


Rebuilding

by KinomiAkai



Category: Naruto
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Comfort, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Explicit Sexual Content, Fix-It, Friends to Lovers, Friendship, Friendship/Love, I wrote this out of pure spite, M/M, Post-War, Romance, SNS Month 2017, Sexual Content, Smut, TO BE CLEAR there is no new gen stuff here, and terrible dad!sasuke, it takes place after Naruto & Sasuke's final battle with a bit of a time-skip, let my boys be happy, no kids or new gen marriages, they've been through enough, this fic is my answer to all those depressing gifs of overworked Hokage!naruto
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-12-02
Updated: 2017-12-08
Packaged: 2019-02-09 18:15:03
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 7
Words: 25,705
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12893895
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/KinomiAkai/pseuds/KinomiAkai
Summary: COMPLETE! Sasuke has spent every day since the war's end trying to rebuild. It's a good thing Naruto has been doing the same, isn't it?Canonverse, but still AU (no marriages), Sasunaru/Narusasu. Written for SNS Month 2017! (Day 2 Prompt: Uchiha Sasuke).





	1. An Unwilling Return

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Happy SNS Month! I am super, super excited about this fic and can't actually believe I'm posting something in time for an event for once.
> 
> I take some liberties regarding chakra mechanics in this fic, and there is definitely mature content in later chapters. To catch you guys up - the final battle &resolution still happened, but not the marriages/kids afterwards. Sasuke still left Konoha, but Naruto and Sasuke have been in contact through the years. Now - enjoy!
> 
> EDIT: this fic now has [AMAZING art by azag24, please look at it here](https://azag24.tumblr.com/post/181487086793/and-i-was-running-far-away-would-i-run-off-the)!!! It's so beautiful I can't take it ;;;;

Sasuke's cloak fluttered in the wind, the leaves growing restless around them. The clearing had seemed so still before Naruto came.

"Well?"

But the wind always seemed to pick up around the blonde. He vaguely wondered if Naruto did it on purpose.

"He's been cleared."

Sasuke felt something settle in his chest.

His brother's name had been cleared.

"And…?"

Naruto's eyes scanned him—at one point in his life, he might not have thought him capable of such a serious gaze. Sasuke knew better, now.

"Anyone we had enough proof to involve them with—that night," Naruto grimaced, and Sasuke knew he had stopped himself from saying 'the massacre'.

Sasuke didn't care; he could say it for what it was.

"Or with keeping your clan imprisoned," he continued, "if we had the proof, they were convicted—alive or not. It all kind of…came out."

He paused, staring into space for a moment.

"But anyways," Naruto shook his head, "that's not the only reason I'm here."

"I'm not coming back."

Naruto's eyes—already dull—dampened. He appreciated—really—Naruto's efforts to reform Konoha, to allow his family justice and to clear Sasuke's name. But Konoha was still—it would always be—

"It's your decision," Naruto said softly.

Sasuke eyed him. Surely the blonde wasn't just going to leave it at that.

"But—"

There it was.

"—for the record, you wouldn't recognize it if you did."

Sasuke gave him a doubtful look—which Naruto met head on with a small smile.

"We're rebuilding," he continued, "and part of that—a big part of Konoha—is the Uchiha Compound."

Sasuke started. He hadn't—of course he hadn't—forgotten his family home, but it…hadn't been in the forefront of his mind for many years now. He wondered how much had been torn down.

"That's also why I'm here. We haven't touched it yet," Naruto said, as if reading his mind, "I kinda hoped…"

Naruto eyed him. Sasuke looked away. He knew what the blonde wanted—he wanted Sasuke there—to get his opinion, or to take charge, or just to get him back to the village again, but—

Naruto sighed.

"I just wanted to know what we should do," his voice was quiet.

Sasuke frowned.

"What do you mean?"

"I mean—there are," he ran a hand through his hair—he always looked younger when he did that, "so many buildings. I don't know if we should restore them as much as we can—or if it would be disrespectful to restore them—I have to do it right, you know—and then, I wanted to—"

Naruto let out a harsh breath.

"I wanted to make—like—a monument, at least, but I don't know," he glanced away from Sasuke, "Sakura-chan said a statue—but I don't know what—or who—it would be—and then I was thinking it should have everyone's names but it's so fucking hard to find a list of everyone—and where do I cut it off? And do I—"

He stopped, biting his lip.

"I—just—wanted your opinion. On all of this stuff."

He glanced at Sasuke, and then shrugged, looking away.

"You can write," Sasuke offered after a moment.

Naruto barked out a laugh. It didn't sound happy.

"Yeah. Yeah—I," Naruto cleared his throat, "sure. I'll do that. What's one more delay, right?"

Sasuke didn't reply.

Naruto spared him one last glance, before nodding, his eyes suspiciously bright. Sasuke turned away from them.

"Yeah," Naruto's voice was quiet, and he heard the footsteps that signaled the blonde turning away, "take care of yourself."

And then he was gone—and Sasuke stood still, just as every time Naruto left, with a hollow feeling echoing in his chest.

* * *

He growled, crushing another paper in his fist and pulling out a blank page. The letters from Naruto had been relentless, long, and full of questions, concerns, problems—

Sasuke frowned, scanning over the page again. The stupid idiot should have included some photos or _something_ —he had no idea what he was _talking about_ —

And herein lied the problem with this plan.

Sasuke did not want to go back to Konoha. He did not.

But he…cared.

He cared about his former home.

He had been thinking about it—almost constantly, since Naruto had left, and the barrage of letters certainly hadn't helped.

He sighed.

Naruto had—miraculously—championed the effort to allow Sasuke the same leniency as the Sannins had once had. He could come and go from Konoha as he pleased, be away for as long as he liked, and complete as many or as little missions as he desired—all while remaining a ninja of the village, if only in title. In spite of everything they had put together to deliver to the council, he still had no idea how the blonde had managed it.

So—in theory—he could _visit_ the village. He could.

He could visit—briefly, give instructions, and leave as quickly as possible.

Naruto would, of course, be hopeful and excited, and stare at him with those _eyes_ , but no amount of guilt would make Sasuke stay in the village that had betrayed him so badly. Even if it's what Itachi would have wanted. Even if it meant being away from Naruto…

Sasuke frowned, reading over the blonde's letter again.

It was messy and disjointed—but that was nothing new. Naruto's visits had been getting fewer—and with more time in between—ever since he had begun this quest for reform. And this last visit, Naruto had looked…even more fatigued than usual. Which was saying something.

Not that he was worried about the blonde. Naruto could take care of himself.

The ink smudged, there, in Naruto's letter again—well, it was less of a smudge and more blurred along the edges, as if the page had been somehow wet…by a single drop of water…in several, separate places…

Sasuke swallowed.

Naruto could take care of himself.

* * *

It was stupid.

It might have been the dumbest thing he'd ever done—although, really, that list went on for quite some time—

Sasuke swallowed, looking up at the gates.

It was absolutely a terrible plan. He knew. No doubt that he would regret it—likely as soon as he walked through the entrance, but—

"Sasuke!"

If Sasuke hadn't been so busy convincing himself he wasn't nervous, he might have appreciated the look on Naruto's face when he saw Sasuke a bit more. As it was, he just felt a bit…numb.

Naruto stopped—barely a foot in front of him—looking as if he was holding himself back from throwing himself at Sasuke.

He likely was.

"Well," Sasuke tilted his chin defiantly, "show me what I'm dealing with."

The resulting smile could have blinded him.

* * *

He was loath to admit it…and he would _never_ say it out loud, but—

Naruto was right.

The village—well, he supposed it was only natural that it looked different after so much of it had been destroyed, but if Sasuke hadn't come here following his own footsteps, he might have thought he was in the wrong place.

Not to mention how different it felt to see the eyes of passersby slide right past him to stare—and smile—at Naruto.

Sasuke couldn't blame them. He tended to do the same.

"Okay," Naruto moved past the gates, "so there are some people here now. We still haven't started," he didn't sound happy about the fact, "because we're still evaluating—everything. Seeing what can be salvaged—and what's too old, you know."

"Hokage-sama!" A man Sasuke didn't recognize ran to Naruto, bowing low. Naruto smiled awkwardly, rubbing the back of his neck.

"We've had to abandon efforts in the main house—another trap, you see—"

Naruto grimaced, eyeing Sasuke.

Sasuke smirked.

"Think you could take care of that?"

Sasuke snorted. Naruto knew very well that he could.

"Perhaps."

A hint of a grin graced Naruto's face before he turned back to the man in front of him.

"This is Sasuke—Uchiha, Sasuke," he said, pausing as the man jerked in surprise—and, more importantly, understanding, "everything he says goes. Even if it contradicts what I've said before. Understand?"

The man nodded—apparently too surprised to speak. Sasuke felt a bit surprised himself.

"Okay," Naruto breathed out, "spread the word, will you? We'll go look around."

"Yes, sir!"

* * *

"There are a lot of houses," Sasuke said, more to himself than anyone else. The compound seemed bigger than he remembered. If anything, it should have felt smaller, but…

"Yeah," Naruto agreed, "I'm not sure—well, it's really up to you, but—"

He paused, his tongue darting out against his lips.

"We could always use more spots of people to live—they could pay you rent if you didn't want to sell anything," he said, "but we could use a bigger school—or—Sakura-chan had this idea for—y'know—kids like us—"

Kids like them…?

"…Orphans?"

"Ah, yeah," Naruto seemed distracted, "sorry—my clones just—"

Naruto paused, staring into space for a moment. Sasuke took it to mean one—or several—of his clones had just delivered their memories to him.

"How many clones do you have out right now?" He asked, scanning over the blonde.

"Oh, I dunno," Naruto moved forward, shaking himself a little, "maybe about a hundred?"

Sasuke raised his eyebrows.

"There's a lot to do, you know. They're not all in the village."

No wonder Naruto's letters were always so disjointed.

"Do you ever release them? All of them?"

"Eh," Naruto shrugged.

"That's healthy," Sasuke muttered.

Naruto gave a vague smile.

"You sound like Sakura-chan."

Sasuke frowned as Naruto's eyes unfocused again.

"Oh—um, anyway—this land is all—technically still yours, but," Naruto paused, "Konoha is—well, me, I am—giving you funding for the renovations, so you don't have to worry about that. As long as, eventually, the land will be somewhat public use. I got the council to be pretty lenient about it though."

He sighed.

"I can pay," Sasuke said. He wasn't sure what made him offer it—maybe it was the bags under Naruto's eyes, or the way he kept sighing—

Naruto stared at him for a moment, before he shook his head.

"I already raised the money before we started. Thanks, though."

He stretched up, barely catching himself on the rickety fence as he swayed too far to the side. Sasuke eyed the motion with a bit of alarm.

"Ah—ahh, crap, sorry," he seemed to shake himself, again—the idiot was acting as if he was on the verge of collapse, "I—um—do you want to stay here? I have to—"

"I'll stay here," Sasuke glanced over. There really was a lot of work to be done, and Sasuke…wanted to stay. For now, at least.

"I'll do this."

"Oh." Naruto didn't move.

"…I'll still be here tonight, Naruto," he offered, scowling.

Naruto's eyes lit up.

"Do you—"

"I'll be here."

He turned away before Naruto could get him to say anything else embarrassing—like asking to join him for dinner. Why did he want to ask Naruto to join him for dinner?

* * *

It was strange.

He leaned against the doorway, watching his old home be measured, assessed, evaluated—

He thought this would hurt more. The memories seemed so…dim, now. So—far away.

Perhaps he just had more to replace them with.

"It really is you."

Sasuke turned to face her. Sakura looked—older. More serious. There were definitely a few wrinkles that were new to him.

"Sakura," he greeted.

"I never thought I'd see the day," she continued as if he hadn't heard him, "I'm surprised Naruto isn't glued to your side."

"He had to—"

"Leave, I know. He ran out of my soldier pills," she snorted, looking away, "he damn near lives on the things, now."

Sasuke said nothing, tucking that information away for future evaluation.

"Is he meeting you back here?"

Sasuke shrugged. He had thought Naruto would be back by now—

"I'm on my way to him now," Sakura said, "want to come with me? We'll stop by his apartment first."

Sakura eyed him with a smug, calm look, as if she knew he would say yes.

He scowled.

Stupid Sakura.

Stupid Naruto.

* * *

Sasuke blinked.

"Naruto still lives—"

"In his old apartment, yes," Sakura unlocked the door to the building, moving up the stairs.

Sasuke frowned. Did Konoha have so little money? He had always been under the impression that Hokage was a very…well-paying position—

"Well, I say 'lives here'," Sakura amended, moving up the stairs, "he doesn't. I don't actually know the last time he's been here."

She fiddled with the keys as they reached the door, finding the right one for the knob.

"Then…?"

"He just stays in his office," she said, anticipating his question, "falls asleep on the floor, or at his desk, or wherever he ends up."

She swung the door open, holding it for Sasuke without looking at him.

The room looked…positively barren. As if no one had lived here—ever. Sasuke stared around the place.

"Wasn't there a—"

"Cabinet there?" Sakura smiled wanly, "mhm. A table, too. The last of it all went towards funding the new Uchiha Compound."

Sasuke felt something coil in his chest. Naruto…

He suddenly felt very angry.

"Why is he like this?"

Sakura laughed—a harsh, bitter sound.

"He was always like this," she opened another cabinet, glancing through it, "I guess you weren't really around for it."

She snorted, moving on to a different part of the kitchen.

"He was just like this—when we were chasing you. All day, every day—he'd pass out in the training grounds, wake up and do it all again. Whenever we weren't out looking for you, he was training for when we would be," she paused, "because fighting you—and chasing you—that was how he was going to bring you back."

The coil in Sasuke's chest tightened—as if it was a snake, wrapping around his heart—

"And then all of— _this_ —came out," she gestured vaguely around herself, "and fighting you wasn't going to bring you back anymore."

She stood up straight, having apparently found what she was looking for. She laid out several things on the counter, weighing out some of what Sasuke assumed were the "pills" from a larger container.

"But reforming the village might."

Sakura walked over to him. Sasuke couldn't bring himself to reply.

"Here," she passed him a bottle—the smaller container she had weighed out, and Naruto's keys, "you can bring them to him. I have to go back to the hospital anyways."

He took them, silently. She didn't seem to mind.

"Good seeing you, Sasuke," she gave him a soft smile. It looked sad—but it only lasted for a moment before she was gone.

But Sasuke didn't move—he stood still, listening to Sakura's words ring in the silence of Naruto's empty apartment.

* * *

Sasuke stifled the urge to kick down the door. He still felt—unnaturally angry. Perhaps he should have calmed down before he came here. Perhaps—

"Sasuke?"

The door had opened. Sasuke felt his anger drain in the face of Naruto's wide, bright, exhausted eyes.

He held out the container—and the keys.

"From Sakura."

"Oh," Naruto had the grace to blush, "thanks—sorry—I was just finishing—although—I guess I can leave a clone—"

Sasuke stepped around him, looking around. There wasn't much to see—other than the mess Naruto had made of his desk.

"What—ah, crap," Naruto glanced at something before grimacing at Sasuke, biting into one of the solider pills, "I didn't realize what time it was. Do you want to—um—get food or something?"

Sasuke raised an eyebrow, eyeing the black mess in Naruto's hand.

"Oh," Naruto looked sheepish, "it's more for the—uh—energy. I can still eat other stuff, too."

"When was the last time you slept?"

Naruto laughed, diverting his eyes.

"…Sakura-chan's been talking, huh?"

Sasuke frowned.

"I'm busy, Sasuke," he smiled, shrugging, "I knew what I was getting into when I signed up for this."

Sasuke scowled, moving around him to get a better look at the papers scattered across Naruto's desk. He couldn't imagine how the idiot even functioned with this thing in that state that it was.

Naruto moved closer to him, staying quiet. He picked up a page, wondering if the blonde would stop him. It was likely confidential, but Naruto didn't seem to mind.

Two lines in, he was immediately bored of the flowery legal jargon. Naruto—doing this every night…who would have thought?

He straightened, putting the page down. He _did_ , however, want to see some of those transcripts—just to make sure Naruto had been thorough, mind you—

"I have some things I'd like to look at."

He didn't have to elaborate. From the way Naruto's eyes dimmed, he understood just fine.

"Yeah," his voice was quiet, "it's all back here."

* * *

Sasuke slid the scroll back, stifling a sigh.

He scowled, eyeing the next transcript. Reading this wasn't doing him any favours—all it had done was put him in a terrible mood.

Which, to be fair, tended to be his resting state, most days.

Not today, though.

He tilted his head, eyeing the back of Naruto's hunched over form. The blonde was surprisingly quiet and studious when he needed to be. Almost…shockingly quiet. Almost as if…

He stood, silently making his way around the desk.

And—yes.

Naruto had fallen asleep.

He eyed the blonde. So much had changed—and yet, standing here, watching a bit of drool leak out of Naruto's mouth, it felt like nothing had changed at all.

He snorted.

What an idiot.

* * *

Sakura jerked as the body was unceremoniously dropped in front of her.

"Sa—"

"He won't wake up," Sasuke cut her off, scowling. His heart felt like it was going to burst out his chest—the blonde was _alive_ , obviously, but—

"Yes, he'll be out for a day or two."

Sasuke felt a thrill of anger flash through his body. Yelling at Sakura would not help. Yelling at Sakura would not—

"His body's just tired," she continued, slowly—far too slowly, Sasuke was going to strangle the woman if she didn't—

"I told you, Sasuke," she ran two fingers along Naruto's neck, "he pretty much lives off the pills. They're not as—extreme as the original ones, but they are still powerful. They're not made to be lived on forever, and once your energy runs out…"

She gestured at Naruto's limp form.

Sasuke swallowed.

"How often does he…do this?"

"Collapse?" She let out a breath, "once every few weeks or so. It depends on how little he's been sleeping. And eating, too—and how many clones he's using."

Sasuke felt his scowl deepening. What was Naruto _doing_? What did he—

"There's no point in taking him to the hospital," she straightened, brushing her hair out of her face, "he just needs to sleep it off. He could use someone to take care of him, though."

Sakura gave him a soft smile. He scowled at her.

Oh, he'd _take care_ of Naruto, alright.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> First chapter done, featuring tired, overworked Hokage!Naruto. More up tomorrow! Get excited - things really start happening then!
> 
> Until then,
> 
> \- Kinomi


	2. Temporary

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you all so much for the love!! You've all put me in such a great mood :D I hope you enjoy the next chapter - I took some liberties with how shadow clones work, but that's always been a bit vague to me. Let me know what you think!

He ended up taking Naruto back to his old apartment. Sasuke's house was being worked on and—he…didn't exactly enjoy staying there.

He dumped Naruto onto the bed—which still had sheets, what a fucking miracle, and scowled around the place.

First thing was first—he was going to confiscate these infernal pills. Where had Sakura found them earlier?

* * *

"—suke?"

"You need an assistant," Sasuke scowled, reading through the damn thing for the thousandth time. These proposed changes made no _sense_ —it was as if they hadn't read the documents at all—

"Wha…?"

Sasuke tilted his head to the side, sniffing as he examined the blonde.

"You're awake," he commented unnecessarily.

"I'm—" Naruto's eyes grew wide, "oh shit, I—"

"Collapsed, yes."

Naruto sat up quickly, immediately swaying. Sasuke made no move to help him—he was in no danger. He was just an idiot.

"You collapse—randomly—once every few weeks."

He scanned Naruto's expression. The blonde didn't look _nearly_ contrite enough.

"Sa—"

"Seems a _tad_ inconvenient."

Naruto let out a breath.

"I—just—I know it's not great, but—"

"You're just _busy_ , right?"

Naruto seemed to falter. Sasuke's anger flared in him so strongly that he suddenly felt he couldn't look at the blonde a moment longer. Naruto was looking like—like he barely even _cared_ —

He grabbed the scroll he had been reading and flung it onto the bed, turning on his heel. He'd had—he'd had _enough of this_ —

"Sasuke—!" He heard Naruto's voice cut off, and then a crash—the moron had tried to stand too quickly—he turned—

In a flash, Sasuke was thrown to the ground—all of Naruto's weight on top of him—that fucking _hurt_ —

"Naruto—get off—"

"Don't leave," Naruto's hands dug into his skin, " _don't leave_."

Oh.

Sasuke sagged against the floor, letting out a breath.

Naruto's grip didn't waver.

"…I'm going to leave eventually, Naruto," he said softly. Naruto had to know that this was temporary. Surely, he knew.

Naruto didn't move—but the breath that Sasuke had been able to feel on his neck cut off completely.

He scowled, shifting underneath the idiot.

"I said eventually," he said, "not right _now_."

The breath started again.

Sasuke stifled a sigh, closing his eyes.

"Usuratonkachi."

* * *

"Hey—what happened to my—"

"I confiscated them," Sasuke didn't look up from the report. Building had _finally_ started, and now, of course, they were coming up with more problems—if they had just _listened_ —

"You—what?"

Naruto looked angry, Sasuke noticed. He sighed, resigning himself to the conversation.

"I took them," he said again, "you can't be trusted with them, so until you can, they're mine."

"I'm not a _child_ —"

Sasuke gave him a look.

"Sasuke—you—what the fuck—"

Sasuke predicted the punch before Naruto even made a fist.

He dodged it with ease; Naruto wasn't trying to hit him, not really—he was just lashing out. He grabbed the fist and held it tight, raising an eyebrow.

Naruto's nostrils flared in anger. Sasuke held his gaze until Naruto was forced to rip his hand from Sasuke's grip, looking away.

"You don't understand. I literally don't have the time to do everything that needs to be done. And—"

"You can make nearly limitless numbers of clones," Sasuke pointed out.

"They drain my energy, Sasuke—it's—it's not just chakra; they need to eat and sleep, too, and without—"

"So make more clones that just sleep—or eat. Make clones just for that."

"It's not that—"

"And get an assistant."

Naruto sagged, sighing.

"It's not—it's not that easy," he ran a hand through his hair.

"You're making it harder than it needs to be."

Naruto glared at him. Sasuke met his eyes with ease.

"Fuck," he breathed, rubbing at his face as he turned back to his desk, " _fuck_ —fine—just…more stuff. Fine."

Sasuke watched him with a speculative gaze.

* * *

Naruto had fallen asleep at his desk again. He should have known. It seemed as if it was the only way he found Naruto, nowadays.

He really had been relying on the pills.

Sasuke straightened, slapping the packet next to Naruto's head. Naruto sprung up, blinking blearily.

"Sign this."

"Sas—oh," he looked down, grabbing at a pen, "'kay…"

Naruto signed the thing without even looking at it. Sasuke wanted to slap him over the head, but he settled for taking the packet back from the idiot.

"What is it?" Naruto asked finally.

"Paperwork," Sasuke answered simply, leaving. This would make things a lot easier.

* * *

"Wah!"

Naruto sprung to life, eyes wide. Sasuke stared at him.

"Fuck—what time is it? How long did I—I had to—"

"Review the policy changes, sign off on the new team schedule, and look over the curriculum for next year."

Sasuke gestured to the neat pile he had made.

Naruto grabbed at the pages, staring with wide, red eyes. He still looked exhausted.

"These…have your signature on them."

"Yes, they do," Sasuke frowned back at the scroll.

"Why do they…?"

Sasuke sniffed, not looking up.

"Because I'm your assistant."

There was a pause.

Sasuke's eyes flickered to Naruto.

" _Temporary_ assistant," he said at Naruto widening smile...that smile, that was—

In a flash, Naruto's arms were wrapped around him.

Sasuke's mind went blank.

"Sasuke," Naruto's breath brushed against his ear, "you—stupid—"

Naruto squeezed tighter.

" _Thank you_."

* * *

Sasuke sighed, feeling the familiar sensation of eyes on him. Kakashi was making no attempt to hide his presence—unlike all of the _other_ times Kakashi had watched him.

He stopped in place, waiting.

"I'm surprised you haven't come sooner," he said quietly, when it became clear Kakashi was waiting for him to speak first.

The grey-haired ninja watched him impassively.

"I didn't really expect you to stay."

Sasuke's lips thinned, conceding the point.

"Neither did I," he said honestly.

Kakashi's eyes drifted to Hokage Tower for a moment and Sasuke's lips twitched upwards. They both knew the effect Naruto tended to have on people.

"Sasuke," Kakashi spoke after a moment, "I—"

"Don't apologize," he said immediately. He could feel—deep, twisting, in his gut—that those were the words his former teacher would have continued with. He didn't want to hear them.

He wasn't sure he deserved to hear them.

Kakashi watched him, face unreadable, before he shifted with a sigh.

The leaves rustled in the wind.

"So," Kakashi's tone lightened considerably, "assistant, hm?"

Sasuke inclined his head.

"Uchiha Sasuke, assistant to Uzumaki Naruto."

Sasuke's lips twitched.

"Well, _someone_ had to help the moron."

Kakashi chuckled, leaning back.

"It's good to have you back, Sasuke."

His gaze looked—warmer. More open. If he had seen that look before, it would have had to have been before he had left—

He crushed the thought as it came, looking away.

"…yeah."

* * *

A few days later, Sasuke conceded the point that he had—maybe—underestimated just what he was getting into. A little bit.

He hissed a breath out through his teeth. He hadn't even gotten a chance to go to the compound today because he had just been— _trapped_ —

"Let's get dinner."

Sasuke jerked up—Naruto's eyes were on him.

"I—now?"

Naruto smiled a little.

"We missed lunch."

"…oh." Sasuke hadn't noticed, "but—"

"It can wait," Naruto stood, reaching towards him.

Sasuke silently handed over the pages—he was so _stiff_ —

"C'mon, teme."

* * *

"…where are you staying right now?"

Sasuke blinked.

"I can't believe I never asked."

"I've just been…at the old place."

"At your old place?"

Sasuke shrugged. In reality, he had really usually ended up wherever Naruto did. Sasuke wasn't exactly used to a bed, so it wasn't as if he minded.

"D'you want to stay at my place tonight?"

Sasuke stared at him.

"We're already here."

"Yeah—I just—" Naruto shifted awkwardly, "thought I'd—"

"I've slept here before," he pointed out.

Naruto blinked.

"Oh," he breathed in, eyebrows furrowed, "…I guess…"

Sasuke frowned.

"I suppose you were already asleep."

Naruto laughed.

"Yeah, I guess I was," he threw Sasuke a lopsided grin, "sorry."

Sasuke rolled his eyes, turning back to the page he had been scanning. He didn't feel Naruto's eyes leave him for some time.

* * *

"Temporary," he corrected again.

Sakura rolled her eyes.

"So you say."

He scowled at her.

"It's been a month, Sasuke," she pointed out.

His scowl deepened. Had it?

"Once construction finishes on the compound—"

"You'll what? Drop Naruto and never come back again? You know he'll never find anyone he trusts as much as you."

He did know.

"I don't need to leave _forever_ ," he pointed out quietly.

"True," she conceded, "but there's no real guarantee you're coming back, is there?"

Sasuke shifted uncomfortably.

"…Naruto trusts me."

She sighed.

"It's not really about trust, Sasuke."

* * *

"I'm thinking about heading out soon," Sasuke watched Naruto carefully.

"Out?"

He swallowed.

"Of the village."

Naruto's pen fell out of his hand.

"Oh," he made a move to pick it up again, only knocking it further away, "oh—you—so soon?"

He looked up at Sasuke, hope written clear as day across his face.

"It's not that soon, Naruto," he said quietly. He had already stayed far longer than he had planned.

Naruto diverted his eyes.

"…right."

Sasuke scowled, the familiar anger sparking to life within him.

"That's it?"

Naruto's head jerked up.

"That's all you have to say?"

"I don't—"

Naruto cut himself off, biting his lip. Sasuke dug his nails into his palm.

"Sasuke," Naruto laughed a humourless laugh, "it's already a fucking miracle that you're here. I'm not—I can't—"

"You're not going to ask me to stay?"

"Of course I want you to stay!"

Sasuke frowned.

"But—I," Naruto let out a long breath, "it's more than that. It's more than you just being here."

He swallowed.

"I want you to _want_ to be here. And you…"

He ran a hand through his hair, looking pained.

Sasuke frowned.

"Why should I stay?"

Naruto stared at him. Sasuke shifted.

"Convince me."

Naruto blinked several times, his mouth opening and closing.

"Well—I—I've been doing everything I can to, y'know, reform Konoha, and improve the shinobi system—and your compound—"

"I know all that. Why should I stay?"

Naruto looked taken aback.

"I—you—"

"What's here for me?"

Naruto sucked in a breath.

"I am."

He flinched as soon as the words left his mouth—

"I mean—I—sorry—I know that—"

Sasuke felt something inside him soften.

"The day I came here," Sasuke interrupted, "you said you had clones out of the village."

"Oh, ye—yeah," Naruto leaned back, thinking, "um—there are a couple diplomacy things, you know—there's one in Waves, right now, and—another one next week, actually—"

"Next week?"

"Yeah," Naruto flipped through some pages, frowning, "to—um—crap, where was it—"

"Next week," Sasuke said again, turning to leave, "pack your bags, usuratonkachi."

* * *

"Fuck," Naruto groaned as he stretched out, "that was exhausting."

Sasuke rolled his eyes.

"You need to get out more," he commented, throwing his bag beside the bed.

The…only bed.

Sasuke raised an eyebrow. Well, alright, then.

"Yeah, I do," Naruto had a cheesy grin on his face, "you're good for me, teme."

Sasuke nearly fell over.

"Naruto," he eyed him suspiciously, "…are you drunk?"

"A little," Naruto laughed, "we barely ate before we got to the dinner. And then it was so _boring_ before the food got there—"

Sasuke snorted.

"Why did you ever sign up for this?"

Naruto flopped onto the bed.

"Because it's worth it," he threw Sasuke a bright smile, "don't you think it's worth it?"

Sasuke's heart flipped in his chest. He forced himself to look away from those eyes.

"Dobe."

Naruto burst into laughter.

"Aw—teme—you haven't called me that in _ages_!"

Sasuke frowned. He hadn't?

"I think it all the time," he threw a smirk at Naruto before digging through his things.

"Hey," Naruto splayed himself out on the bed like a starfish, "they only gave us one bed!"

"Observant as usual," Sasuke muttered, digging further into the bag. There was so much useless shit in here—

"It'll be like old times," Naruto giggled, "right? Right, teme?"

Naruto wiggled until he leaned over the edge of the bed, peering down at Sasuke.

Sasuke stared at him for a moment, his heart making motions that he found entirely questionable—

"Drink some water," he muttered, diverting his gaze.

Naruto snorted, rolling over to stare at the ceiling.

"Where did we put our water?"

Sasuke threw it onto the blonde's chest.

"Ow," Naruto grumbled, "thanks."

There was a pause. Sasuke moved over the bathroom, leaving the door open.

"Hey, Sasuke?"

"Hm?"

"You travelled a ton, right?"

He raised an eyebrow, but nodded.

"What was your favourite place?"

He paused, pulling the toothbrush out of his mouth.

"I wasn't exactly sightseeing, Naruto."

"Yeah—but you must have seen some stuff."

Sasuke continued brushing his teeth for a moment, thinking.

"Wherever it was," Naruto rolled over again, "we should go."

Sasuke glanced back at him.

"You barely leave the village and you're already planning your next trip?"

"Mhm," Naruto gave a lazy grin, "it's different when it's with you."

Sasuke grabbed the counter to stop himself from stumbling. The stupid—idiot—what was he _saying_ —

He put the toothbrush down, splashing water against his face—which felt like it was trying to set itself ablaze. At least rubbing it with the towel made it all equally blotchy and red.

He frowned down at Naruto's still form as he came back towards the bed.

"If you're going to fall asleep, at least get under the blankets."

"'m not asleep," Naruto slurred, blearily opening his eyes. Sasuke rolled his, shoving the blonde aside with his hip. Naruto only responded by grabbing the blanket out of Sasuke's hand to pull it over the two of them.

Sasuke breathed out a quiet sigh. It had been a long day…

The travel had been fine. Pleasant, even—but Sasuke could have really done without the dinner. Social events were just…

Of course, Naruto had _thrived_.

He eyed the blonde—who was fully asleep at this point, mouth wide open as usual. The snores hadn't started yet, but he could hear the hitched breath that indicated they were on their way.

Naruto didn't look quite as exhausted as he once had. Sasuke hadn't realized how much paler he had looked—how clear the circles under his eyes had been—until he was back to normal. Well, relatively back to normal.

He was still quieter—more hesitant. Especially around Sasuke. But every now and then, he relaxed enough to be his former idiot self—like today.

Sasuke smirked a little. He ought to wake the blonde up—if only to get more of that silly, drunken Naruto. He hadn't gotten enough of it when they were alone…

Sasuke's eyes flung open wide. What was that train of thought? That had been—

He turned his body to face fully away from Naruto, edging as far away as he could.

He was just tired. He wasn't making sense.

He just needed to—go to sleep.

* * *

"That's too bad," Naruto frowned, eyeing the rubble that had once been one of his clan's houses.

Sasuke shrugged.

"It was too old. We salvaged everything we could."

Naruto conceded the point.

"Besides, it's—in the center," Sasuke frowned, "I've been thinking of moving here. Once it's rebuilt."

Naruto's mouth sagged open.

"Temporarily," he said quickly.

Naruto's mouth snapped shut.

"I think," Naruto swallowed, "that's a great idea."

Sasuke studiously ignored the warm feeling in his chest.

"Will you show me? Once it's done?"

Sasuke raised an eyebrow.

"Once it's done, we're never staying at your pathetic apartment again."

He turned away, walking along the path.

"You may as well just sell it."

* * *

"Ah—fuck—why are your feet so _cold_?" Naruto hissed, jerking up.

"Why are you touching my feet?" Sasuke mumbled back. He had just been falling asleep…

"Because I'm cold!"

"Maybe that's why my feet are cold…"

"Sa—that doesn't even make any _sense_ —"

"Usuratonkachi," Sasuke rolled over, reaching his arm out to slap a hand over Naruto's mouth. He missed spectacularly, but it did the job nonetheless. "Just—shut up."

Naruto obeyed, rolling to face him. Sasuke's arm automatically tightened to bring the warmth closer. He was so _tired_ —and so comfortable…he could feel Naruto's breath on his skin…

His world went dark.

* * *

"Why am I being paid less than I used to be?"

Naruto was frowning at a sheet of paper. Sasuke raised an eyebrow.

"Because you're paying your assistant, usuratonkachi," Sasuke shook his head, "…which you've been doing for weeks."

Naruto's cheeks grew red.

"Well I don't really pay attention—"

"I'll say."

"Oi!"

Sasuke only smirked, turning back to his work.

"But—um, Sasuke," Naruto sounded hesitant, "I was gonna use that money for the school, you know—"

"No."

"Wh—"

"No," Sasuke repeated.

"Sasuke—the village _needs_ it—"

Sasuke raised an eyebrow, finally looking up.

"When was the last time you held a fundraiser?"

"We—I—"

"Have you been taking donations for the school?"

"They can't afford it!" Naruto stood up, eyes flashing, "damn it, Sasuke, the people who live here deserve to not have to—"

"Oh, I'm sorry," Sasuke mocked, tilting his chin up, "do you _not_ live here?"

Naruto's mouth audibly snapped shut.

Sasuke turned back to his papers.

"Spend your money," he said, turning the page, "and I will make sure we don't _starve_. And that we own furniture, for fuck's sake."

He mumbled the last bit under his breath. He was sick of Naruto's office and he was sick of Naruto's apartment—he couldn't wait until his house was finished, and he could actually start to be _organized_ —

"What?" He muttered, annoyed at Naruto's persistent stare.

Naruto seemed to jump—as if breaking out of thought—before blinking and quickly diverting his eyes.

"Oh—uh, nothing. Sorry."

* * *

Sasuke pressed his back against the door, waiting. He wasn't—necessarily—eavesdropping; he was just waiting until the conversation was finished to enter. It was polite, after all, wasn't it?

And if he _happened_ to be hiding his chakra signature—that was just a natural consequence of being a missing-nin for so long. It was just automatic, at this point.

He wasn't eavesdropping.

"No—I know, Sakura-chan," he could hear Naruto sigh, even through the wood, "but—"

"He seems happy?" She interrupted him.

Naruto sighed again.

"He seems…content, at least."

Sakura made a noise. Sasuke couldn't quite pinpoint what kind of emotion she was trying to convey by it.

"Do you think he will ever, really, be happy? In Konoha, I mean…?"

There was a pause. Something about the way Sakura had said Konoha…

"I—" Naruto started, "I—you know what, though—that's the thing. It's not the same. Before I was Hokage? Sure. He'd hate the fucking place. I nearly hated the fucking place. But I'm not doing all of this for nothing, you know—"

Naruto's voice was growing stronger, now—

"You know why I'm doing this. Beyond it being the right fucking thing to do. I'm not just changing things for the hell of it. I'm changing Konoha because that—those _assholes_ —they aren't Konoha. You know what my Konoha is? It's us. It's Sasuke. My Konoha is Kakashi—it's Ino, and Lee and Sai and Chouji— _that_ is what this village is, to me. That's the village I'm leading."

Sasuke sagged back against the door, closing his eyes.

"So—yes. I think Sasuke will someday—hopefully—if I ever fucking do everything I need to do to actually make this feel like home to him—be happy here."

Home?

"And I don't care how long it's gonna take."

Sasuke let out a small breath, letting the smile spread across his face.

"I'm going to make this feel like home again."

What an absolutely _Naruto_ thing to say.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> What did you think? Let me know!!


	3. Because I'm Your Friend

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ahhhh you guys have been so kind! Thank you so, so much!! This chapter is where we start to play with chakra a little. I hope you enjoy!

He couldn't breathe.

Sasuke tried to scream—clutching for something—anything—the blood still flashed in front of his eyes and something twisted around his throat—tighter—he couldn't _breathe_ —he scratched at himself—

"—suke!"

Naruto—in front of him—Naruto, beaten and bloodied— _dead_ , like everyone else—but it was _him_ —he did this—he had—

"—wake—teme—"

He could hear the echoes of Naruto's screams—the echoes of his own—Itachi's body at his feet, where his parents had once lain—looking up at him with wide, unseeing eyes—those were Naruto's eyes—they— _no_ —

"Sas—"

He flinched.

"—breathe…"

Something was wrapping around him—something warm, familiar—he shifted, and its grip stayed slack—he could—

"Just breathe, Sas—"

He sucked in a shuddering breath.

"You're okay."

He let the breath go.

"I'm here."

Naruto?

"I'm here, teme."

He opened his eyes. It was dark…he was in Konoha—in Naruto's bed—and Naruto…

"It's okay, Sasuke, it's gonna be okay—"

…was whispering soothing words into his ear, one arm softly draped across Sasuke's chest, his chakra expanding over Sasuke's body as if it was some sort of warm blanket—Sasuke blinked several times—

"Na—ruto?"

His voice came out broken, and he cursed himself. It was just a nightmare, damn it—

Naruto pulled back, staring down at him with wide, worried eyes.

"Hey," he breathed, running a thumb ran over Sasuke's cheek—fuck, he must have been crying—

"What—ah," Sasuke tried to sit up—he felt so _shaky_ —

Naruto caught him as he swayed, helping him to sit up. He kept his arms around Sasuke—and his chakra didn't waver.

"I—um," Naruto shuffled a little closer, "I was just in the bathroom—and you weren't waking up—I didn't know what else to do—"

Sasuke sucked in a breath, fighting a losing battle to lean in against Naruto. He felt so _exhausted_ …

"…usuratonkachi," his head dropped onto Naruto's shoulder—usually, after something like this, he wouldn't sleep at all, no matter how exhausted he was. But somehow, this…

"Sasuke…"

Naruto's chakra pulsed—holding him close, reminding him that he was here, with Naruto, now…that Naruto was alive…they were both alive…

"Do you want me to—"

"Stay."

His voice was barely a whisper, but from the way Naruto clutched him tighter, swallowing his own words, he must have heard him. Sasuke could already feel himself starting to drift off—he fell, slowly, down Naruto's body…

Naruto's hands rested on his head—distantly, he thought he might feel the slightest movement, as if Naruto was running his fingers through his hair…he could feel Naruto's warmth, underneath him…he let his arm shift, circling Naruto's waist…Naruto's chakra moved softly, gently around him…

He closed his eyes.

* * *

"Hey," Naruto's voice broke him out of his reverie—they had been working in relative silence for a few hours now. Sasuke looked up.

The blonde had a wide grin on his face—his eyes bright—nearly glittering—

"D'you wanna spar?"

Sasuke blinked.

Spar—with Naruto? It had been _years._

"I can't believe it took you this long to ask."

* * *

Sasuke's back hit the ground, Naruto straddling him to hold him down.

"Fuck," Naruto threw him a tired grin, "I am so out of shape."

He could feel Naruto's grip loosening—they were both slick with sweat—

"Yes, you are."

It was the only warning he gave Naruto before he pulled himself free—he twisted, lifting his hips and tossing Naruto over the top of him—

He jumped to his feet, turning to face Naruto just as the blonde did the same.

They paused, staring at each other.

He let Naruto come to him. He had more patience—and he could easily predict Naruto's movements. He was going to go for Sasuke's wrist again—

At the last moment, Naruto twisted, diving down and pulling Sasuke's ankle out from under him. Sasuke—ignoring the way his stomach turned from the motion—used the momentum to spin, lashing his leg out at Naruto—he knew he wouldn't hit, it was too messy, but—

He landed on his feet, immediately dashing forward. Naruto caught the first blow, knocked back the second, but Sasuke ducked and caught him off guard with the third—

This time, he pinned Naruto on his back.

Naruto's face was flushed, his eyes were bright—he grinned up at Sasuke as Sasuke smirked down at him—

"Do you yield?"

Naruto's grin grew wider.

"Never."

Sasuke blamed the sweat for the ease with which Naruto broke free of his grip, but he latched his legs around Naruto as he felt his hips rise—he wouldn't get caught by the same trick he had used—

Naruto heaved to the side, turning them both over. Sasuke's back hit the dirt with a thump—his legs still hooked around Naruto—

Naruto's face was not an inch from his. He barely had to whisper for Sasuke to hear him.

"Do _you_ yield?"

Sasuke felt a thrill shoot through him.

"Never."

* * *

"Maybe we—hah—overdid it," Naruto panted, face pressed against the dirt.

"Usuratonkachi," Sasuke lay beside him, fighting the desire to never move again, "you smell."

" _You_ smell."

Sasuke heaved in a breath, trying to get his lungs back to normal.

"Does your apartment have a bath?"

"It only has the," Naruto inhaled, "shower."

Sasuke made a noise of discontent.

"The hot springs—"

"Were destroyed," Naruto swallowed in between breaths, "we're working on it."

"Ugh."

"Don't you have a bath or something?" Naruto turned his face towards him.

Sasuke let out a breath.

"It's so far…"

Naruto laughed.

"C'mon, you lazy teme," he sat up with a groan, "let's go."

* * *

"You can go fir—whoa," Naruto's eyes went wide, "this is—huge!"

Sasuke snorted.

"It's like you have your own bathhouse," Naruto peered around the tub, "does it still work?"

"I should hope so," Sasuke ran his hand along the tile, evaluating if they had been the right choice, "it's new."

"Wait—this isn't our house, is it?"

Sasuke rolled his eyes.

"We're in the _east_ , usuratonkachi," he pulled off his shirt, tossing it to the floor, "our house is in the center. And it doesn't exist yet."

Naruto stared at him for a long moment.

"…Naruto?"

"Um—ah," Naruto flinched, blinking quickly and looking away, "nice. I mean—it's nice. The room is nice."

He gave Naruto a strange look, but accepted the compliment.

"Do you want me to—uh—" Naruto gestured behind him, towards the door.

Sasuke shrugged.

"It's big enough," he said. If Naruto wanted to join him, he didn't care. He had been in plenty of public baths before—this was no different.

He sat on the edge of the tub, reaching under the tap to gauge the temperature.

Good enough.

He leaned back against the wall, closing his eyes as he waited for the tub to fill. The cool tile felt nice against his skin—and the sound of the water was so soothing…

"You know—"

Sasuke jerked up, his eyes snapping open.

"—if I hadn't stayed here, you would have flooded your new mini bathhouse."

Naruto grinned, wading over to the ledge where Sasuke sat. The tub was…full.

Oh.

Sasuke looked away, his cheeks burning. He hadn't _meant_ to fall asleep—

"C'mon, teme," Naruto swam back a little, "it's really warm. You'll take a much better nap in here."

"I'm not looking to drown, thank you," he muttered, dutifully undressing.

Naruto didn't reply—he turned, only to see the glimpse of blonde hair disappearing into the water.

He managed to slip into the water before Naruto came back for air.

"Pah," Naruto exhaled, wiping his hair back. Sasuke watched his tongue dart out to lick a water droplet off his lips.

His mouth suddenly felt—very dry.

"Didja have a good nap?" Naruto had that grin—and that glint in his eye—again.

Sasuke rolled his eyes, using it as an excuse to look away from Naruto. His chest felt—so _tight_ —

"But actually though," Naruto spoke again, "I heal fast. How are you feeling? I know we overdid it."

"Speak for yourself," he muttered, sinking further into the tub. He was—in fact—incredibly sore. He barely wanted to move at all, let alone swim around like Naruto was doing.

"Sakura-chan made me learn how to do those massages," Naruto leaned back, exposing more of his chest, "if you want."

Sasuke found his eyes drifting against his will. For someone who claimed he was out of shape, Naruto was…

"…massages?" He forced himself to ask.

"Yeah, the chakra ones. Have you never had one?"

Sasuke shook his head.

"Here, give me your hand," Naruto waded a little closer, reaching out. Sasuke automatically caught his hand.

"I'm not as good at it as she is," he said, flipping Sasuke's hand over, "let me know if I use too much chakra or something."

Sasuke swallowed as Naruto's fingers began to move. This felt—somehow—

"Ah—"

Sasuke's hand flinched away from the sensation. Naruto froze.

"Too much?"

"No," Sasuke shook his head, "no—I just—wasn't expecting it…"

Naruto smiled a little, and re-focused back on Sasuke's hand. It was—it felt incredibly strange. Not _bad_ , mind you, but very strange—Sasuke wasn't sure how to describe it—he could feel Naruto's chakra very clearly, but it was condensed, squeezing in on a single point as opposed to everywhere around him like he was used to—

"Where does it actually hurt? We can see if it helps."

"My shoulders," Sasuke answered honestly. It was _always_ his shoulders.

"Mkay, turn around."

He obeyed, resting his arms on the ledge of the tub. He heard the water shift—Naruto was moving closer to him—and then Naruto's hands were on him. He closed his eyes.

Now that he knew what to expect, this felt almost...nice. Naruto's chakra was familiar—and his warmth, in combination with the water around him…he could feel his muscles relaxing almost immediately under the touch. He almost wanted _more_ —Naruto's hands stuck to his shoulders, but he wished the blonde would explore just a little more—he wanted to feel…so much more of that touch…

Sasuke's eyes sprang open. These thoughts _again_ —

"Shit, sorry," Naruto's hands moved away—why had they moved away? "It's hard to channel it through the water without getting confused. I still suck with that stuff, heh."

Sasuke frowned, forcing himself to lean back onto the ledge of the tub. Naruto thought he had somehow hurt him—Sasuke could take a lot more than a little chakra.

"Keep going, usuratonkachi," he muttered, laying his head down on his forearm and willing himself to relax. If he could just keep his mind in check—

"So demanding," he could _hear_ the smile in Naruto's voice—but as he felt those hands on him, he suddenly couldn't find it in himself to protest. So what if he was demanding? As long as it was Naruto fulfilling his demands…

His eyes sprang back open. What was _with_ him?!

* * *

"Oh," he frowned, looking up, "I don't think I have towels…"

The place was functioning, sure, but that didn't mean it was functional. Damn.

He turned back to Naruto.

"Uh," Naruto grinned a little, "I could use wind to dry us off…?"

Sasuke snorted.

"What? You got a better idea?"

He considered the question.

"There might be some sheets or something…"

* * *

"Is this the life or what?"

Naruto grinned, eyes flickering up to him for just a moment before focusing back on the task at hand.

Sasuke smirked, pulling the sheet tighter to himself as he fought the urge to lean into Naruto's wind. It was only the slightest breeze, but it was very effective…

Naruto had a sheet around himself, too—for modesty—but had opted to dry off Sasuke first. Sasuke certainly wasn't complaining.

But, on the other hand…

"Can't you make that any warmer?" He could feel the goosebumps starting—it would be so easy to doze off if the wind was just a little bit warmer—

Naruto snorted.

"That's your job," he said, "I can't control temperature."

"Really?" He glanced over at Naruto, smirking, "I've always found you to be full of hot air."

"You—"

The wind stopped. Naruto laughed, running a hand through his still-wet hair.

"You are—so distracting," Naruto's grin faced him fully and Sasuke felt the strange feeling bubble up in his chest again. It was almost as if he felt _nervous_ , but he couldn't understand _why_ —

"D'you want me to keep going?" Naruto's hand grazed against his skin. Sasuke swallowed.

"I'm—almost dry," he scanned over Naruto, his eyes taking far longer than they had any business doing, "…and you're dripping water all over my floor."

Naruto rolled his eyes, smiling.

"Yeah, yeah."

* * *

"Naruto—hah—"

He could barely find the breath to gasp his name—Naruto knelt, looking up at him. Sasuke's pants dropped to the floor—he vaguely wondered what happened to Naruto's clothes—

"Nnngh—Naruto," Naruto's hand felt so good—and his mouth was moving closer—

Naruto smiled up at him, watching him.

His eyes looked up, oddly serious—

"Why?" He heard his voice ask.

Naruto positioned Sasuke's cock at his mouth. He could feel his breath—

"Because I'm your friend."

"Wh—"

He flung himself out of the bed, tumbling to the floor in a panic.

"Sas—teme? You okay?" Naruto peered blearily at him.

Sasuke couldn't look at him. He _couldn't_. That dream—that dream had—

"I'm—fine," he stood, quickly, turning away, shifting his pants so that Naruto wouldn't see—he wouldn't notice Sasuke's—fuck—he could _still_ feel the pleasure—as if it had been real—

"I just need to—go to the bathroom."

* * *

"Naruto-kun?"

Naruto glanced up from his desk.

"Oh—Hinata-chan! Come in," Naruto's kind smile lit up the room. Sasuke scowled.

"I was hoping to talk to you," she continued quietly—hesitantly. Her stutter wasn't quite as predominant, but—

"Yeah, of course," Naruto set his things aside.

"A-ah," her eyes flickered to Sasuke, "could we speak in private?"

Sasuke's scowl deepened to a point where it nearly became painful. What did _she_ need to talk to Naruto about— _alone_ —

"Sure."

His head snapped up. Naruto's eyes rested on him for a moment—they looked apologetic—and then they flickered to the door.

Sasuke's nostrils flared.

He made a conscious effort not to slam the door on his way out.

* * *

"She was—"

"I don't care."

Sasuke turned back to the report he had been reviewing before that— _woman_ —had interrupted them. He was busy—he had things to do—and he didn't—he didn't want to consider just _why_ he was so angry right now—

"Sasuke," Naruto said, "listen—"

"I don't care," he said again.

" _I_ do!" Naruto nearly yelled, before exhaling harshly, "Sasuke—I really fucking need your opinion on this. Please."

Sasuke closed his eyes, feeling pained. He knew what this was about—and he didn't—he couldn't—

"Hinata-chan's head of the clan, now," Naruto's voice continued.

Sasuke's eyes opened. That…

"And we're trying to get rid of those fucking curse seals on the branch members, but—"

He sighed. Sasuke stared at him, his brow furrowing. This was not what he had—

"But the main branch—the older members—are being really fucking stubborn about it. And I—I don't know if I should interfere—they say that I shouldn't, because it's a _clan_ issue, but—"

"You're the Hokage," Sasuke interrupted, "they're part of Konoha—clan or not."

Naruto nodded—once, and then again, and again.

"Yeah," his voice was breathy, "I'm— _fuck_ —I'm just—I just really don't want to," he swallowed, "isolate them—"

"You won't," Sasuke said immediately, "you're not."

Naruto's eyes met his.

"I won't let you."

Naruto sagged, a slow smile spreading across his face.

"I gotta—" he gave a small laugh—almost like a sigh, holding a hand up to his face, "damn. The next time we talk about this, you have to stay. I need you here. Hold me to that."

Sasuke felt something akin to victory settle in his stomach.

"I will."

* * *

"Naruto…?"

Naruto smirked, crawling over him.

"Sasuke-teme," he muttered, pressing kisses to his chest, his neck, his ear—he could _feel_ his breath—Sasuke felt frozen underneath it—

"You've made me wait so _long_."

Naruto straddled him, positioning his hips over Sasuke's— _oh_ —where—where had their clothes—?

"You won't make me wait any _longer_ , will you?"

He lowered himself and Sasuke felt as if he _exploded_ —

Sasuke flung himself out of the bed, taking the sheets tumbling with him.

"Teme," Naruto muttered sleepily, "s'cold…"

Sasuke stayed on the floor, that night—it took the rest of it to catch his breath.

* * *

"I don't like wearing it, honestly," Naruto frowned, fiddling with the hat, "the coat is fine, but this just gets in the way—"

"You tortured soul," Sasuke slapped Naruto's hands away and adjusted the hat himself—Naruto was doing it entirely wrong. How he had managed inauguration was beyond him—

He swallowed, pulling his hand back.

"Thanks, teme," Naruto threw him a smile. He nodded stiffly in response.

Naruto really made a sight to be seen—dressed fully in the formal Hokage clothing. He had gotten the letter—of course—inviting him to Naruto's inauguration. And then the letter after that, telling him how it had been, and how he should have been there—

He had read them both. He hadn't replied to either of them.

Naruto exhaled, wiggling his fingers.

"Wish me luck. I hate these things."

"Don't fall off the stage, usuratonkachi."

Naruto laughed, playfully whacking his arm before turning to leave. Sasuke's eyes trailed his footsteps…

"Naruto—"

The blonde turned around—bright eyes looking at him expectantly.

Sasuke swallowed.

"You look—good."

Naruto's smile lit up the room.

* * *

"Oh—you came." Sasuke wasn't sure what to be more surprised about—the fact that Kakashi had actually come to meet him, or the fact that he had actually come on time.

Kakashi stuck his hands in his pockets, approaching him with his usual lazy demeanor. Sasuke knew better—the sharpness in Kakashi's visible eye easily betrayed his casual façade.

"Here," Sasuke tossed the scroll to him—notes on his latest project. It wasn't anything special—or particularly challenging, really—but it was interesting, at least. He was looking to—

"You want to—forge a new blade?"

Sasuke nodded, scratching at his chin.

"One that is more compatible with the chidori," he said, "or—rather—designed specifically for it."

There was a pause. Kakashi frowned down at the paper.

"I—" Sasuke suddenly felt inexplicably nervous—he knew his notes were solid. He knew. He was confident in them—and yet, as Kakashi frowned, scanning the page, Sasuke's confidence slowly began to degrade, "since you—ah, created the technique, I thought…"

"Hm," Kakashi sat down on the spot, crossing his legs, "it's…plausible."

He shuffled the scroll up, eye scanning through it again.

"What sort of metal were you thinking of using?"

"For the blade?"

Kakashi nodded.

"I—" he stopped. He had been so focused on manipulating the technique, he hadn't even begun to consider the materials— _stupid—_

"I'm not…sure."

Kakashi spread the scroll out on the ground, leaning over it and gesturing Sasuke forward. Sasuke kneeled beside him.

"Well—from what you have here," he circled some of Sasuke's writing with his finger, "it seems like you would need a full conductor—and there are some issues with that—but if you wanted it to be more like what you have here…"

* * *

Sasuke scowled at the letter in his hand. He wasn't sure he was alright with this. He wasn't—

"Sasuke—I've been meaning to tell you—"

Naruto stopped.

"What's wrong?"

Sasuke glanced at him, and then went back to staring down at the letter.

"I have to go see someone."

Naruto blinked, his eyebrows furrowing.

"Someone? Like who?"

He glanced back at the letter.

"Karin." And Juugo and Suigetsu. He hadn't been sure if they would stay together after their group had fractured. He was relatively surprised to see they had.

"Oh." And there was that tone of voice—the one that had made it impossible to leave before—

"To repay a favour."

There was a pause. Sasuke saw Naruto swallow several times.

"Oh," he said again. He attempted a smile, but all that came up were shaky, tight lips.

"Eventually—it's now, isn't it?"

"Naruto—"

"No—you're right," he shook his head, "you were very clear. This was all—temporary. I know. I never should have expected—"

His breath hitched, and he ran a hand through his hair.

"I'm sorry, Sasuke. I shouldn't—be doing this. You need to go to her," Naruto gave a bracing nod, "if she needs you, you need to go."

Sasuke felt the pain expand in his chest. This—again—

"Don't get me wrong, teme," Naruto took a step forward, eyes flashing, "if you don't come back—I won't stop. I won't ever stop. I—"

He swallowed his words, blinking furiously.

"Dobe," Naruto was acting as if he would never see him again, "don't be so dramatic."

Naruto let out a breathy laugh.

"Yeah. Sorry."

Sasuke felt the corners of his lips quirk up—just as Naruto took a step forward, wrapping his arms around him.

"I better see you soon, teme."

Sasuke closed his eyes, burning the feeling of Naruto's warmth into his mind.

"Usuratonkachi."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And that's chapter 3! What did you all think? Are you still enjoying it? Please let me know!
> 
> New chapter will be up tomorrow! I guess this is the closest I've gotten in a long time to leaving a story on a cliffhanger, eh? Stay tuned to see if Sasuke will ever come back ;)
> 
> Until then,
> 
> \- Kinomi


	4. Because I'm Your...Friend...?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's a longer one today - you'll see why pretty quickly. Are you guys ready? ;)

Sasuke let out a frustrated breath, turning on his heel.

He could not believe this. He absolutely could not believe this.

Missing Naruto had been expected. He knew, of course, that he would miss the light that Naruto brought into his life. The bright eyes, the brilliant smile, the loud, obnoxious voice—Sasuke was intimately familiar with what missing Naruto felt like—he had felt it nearly every day since he left—but he hadn't—he hadn't anticipated—

Missing Konoha.

And, for once, it was him, hovering over a letter, debating if it was too soon to send a second without having received a reply to the first. He wanted to know if his house was finished, so that he could put that statue (the one he had seen in a village on the way to the hideout, the one that reminded him of Naruto, the one he had immediately bought in spite of the fact that it was incredibly inconvenient to travel with) in the garden—he wanted to show Kakashi what he had come up with, because he had made some sort of breakthrough not a day ago and the project was going to go so smoothly, now—and he had made Karin re-tell the same joke three times so that he could write it properly, because he _knew_ Sakura would get a kick out of it—and—

He wanted to go back. After only a few days away.

He let out a breath.

And a few nights. It was much worse at night—so much colder. He fully blamed Naruto for the fact.

Naruto was so warm—so soft—he barely had any trouble sleeping with the blonde around—

Except, of course, for when the dreams came.

He swallowed.

They were much more pleasant than the nightmares, but they left him equally as shaken. They hadn't lessened with distance from Naruto—if anything, they were getting more frequent. And last night he had—he hadn't awoken in time to stop himself from—

He closed his eyes.

It had never been just a simple friendship with Naruto, had it?

* * *

Naruto's arms squeezed him tighter. He would never admit how good they felt—how he had missed this—

"I should have asked to come with you," Naruto whispered.

Sasuke gave a jerky nod— _yes_ , the idiot should have—not trusting himself to speak quite yet.

"I was waiting for you to ask," he could feel his breath against his neck, "but that was—stupid— _stupid_ —and then I didn't know if you would come _back_ , and I—"

Naruto pulled him closer.

"I never said my leaving wouldn't be temporary," he said quietly.

Naruto laughed—his voice thick and wet.

"You— _teme_ —"

He sniffed, burying his face back into Sasuke's neck.

Sasuke let his eyes close, just for a moment.

He had once hated being touched.

"Usuratonkachi," Sasuke said quietly, "are you ever going to let go of me?"

Naruto shook his head, not looking up.

"No," he breathed out, and Sasuke suddenly got the sense he was talking about something entirely different, "never."

* * *

"Surprise," Naruto turned to him, eyes sparkling with excitement.

Sasuke blinked up at the building. This was…

"It's the right one, right? I didn't screw it up—the one right in the center?"

"Usuratonkachi," he snorted, "yes—this is it."

It looked…good. Fitting. It—

"They finished it yesterday. Just the structure, I mean. I was gonna write—but," Naruto leaned a little closer, letting their arms brush against each other, "you came back."

Sasuke eyed him. Naruto had been saying that nearly every other sentence. He sensed that the blonde was still in some sort of disbelief.

He fought a smile.

"Well then," he took a step forward, "shall we?"

* * *

It was bare—something he would make short work of—but it was…promising. Most of the appliances weren't here, yet, and there was no running water, but—

"Do _we_ have our own mini bathhouse?" Naruto ran his fingers along the wall.

Sasuke snorted.

"There is a bathroom, yes," Sasuke flipped through the floor plan in his mind, trying to orient himself, "it—"

Naruto turned a corner, peering into a room.

"Not here," he commented. Sasuke reached out and pulled him back by the wrist.

"Usuratonkachi," he turned, barely noticing as his hand slipped to intertwine with Naruto's, "this way."

* * *

"We should stay here tonight," Naruto stared around the room as if he had never seen a room before.

Sasuke eyed him incredulously.

"There's no furniture—or running water—or—"

Naruto laughed.

"It's no worse than my office—and we've both slept there. Come on."

Sasuke shook his head. It was a ridiculous idea—it really was, but—

Naruto was looking at him with those eyes.

"It's our house, Sasuke," Naruto gave a soft, breathy laugh, "it's our house."

It was.

Him and Naruto.

Sasuke swallowed.

"Alright."

* * *

"This is much better," Naruto grinned, sidling up to the fire.

"If this house burns down, it's entirely your fault."

Naruto laughed.

"Oh yeah, 'cause _I'm_ the fire specialist around here—"

Sasuke shuffled closer so he could whack his arm properly. Naruto just grinned, turning towards him. Sasuke didn't bother pulling his hand away.

The light from the fire flickered along Naruto's face—they wrapped around his cheeks and reflected in his eyes. Sasuke swallowed.

"Sasuke…?"

"Hm?"

"Why are you here?"

Sasuke raised an eyebrow.

"I—I mean—you know—why come back?"

"…you were the one giving me reasons to stay."

"Yeah," Naruto's tongue flicked out against his lips, "but—something worked. What worked?"

Sasuke faced him properly, his hand moving to fall in front of Naruto. The blonde caught it in his own.

"Why should I stay?"

Naruto blinked.

"Give me your reasons again."

"Oh," Naruto inhaled, softly, playing with Sasuke's fingers. "I'm reforming the village—and the compound. Well," he smiled wider, "no, _you're_ working on the compound. And you're my assistant—and you're so," he let out a breath, " _so_ fucking helpful," he pulled the hand closer—Sasuke followed it, "you're good for the village. You're good for me."

Naruto's fingers intertwined with his, the back of Sasuke's hand pressing up against his cheek.

"You…made me remember why I was doing this again. You reminded me why it was worth it—and you…"

Naruto shifted—Sasuke swore he felt the blonde's lips press to the back of his hand for barely a second—

"It's completely selfish," he swallowed, searching Sasuke's eyes, "I can pretend it's about the village, or the work, or whatever else, but it's not. It's about me. I…want you to stay for me. I want you to stay with me."

Sasuke could feel himself drifting closer to Naruto—as if the blonde was somehow pulling him in—he paused, just as he felt Naruto's breath on his lips—his eyes flickered up to Naruto's—

"I—"

Those eyes told him everything he needed to know.

"Sasuke, I—"

Sasuke couldn't stay back a moment longer.

He pressed their lips together—Naruto's were soft—so soft—Sasuke felt himself shudder against them—this was—he wanted so much _more_ of this—

As if reading his thoughts, Naruto's hand pulled at the back of his neck—Sasuke followed his touch, rolling until he was on top of Naruto—he pressed their hips together and Naruto's mouth opened with a stifled moan—Sasuke took full advantage of it—

He could feel Naruto's tongue inside his mouth—he could feel the way Naruto moved underneath him—he could feel Naruto's hands under his shirt, pushing it up—

They broke apart just long enough for Sasuke to toss his shirt away—

"Watch the fire, teme—"

He leaned back down, extinguishing the flames with barely a wave of his hand. The room flickered into darkness, but he could make out Naruto's form with ease—Naruto always had that glow—he moved away from Naruto's lips to kiss his cheek, his jawline, his neck—

"Ha—ah," Naruto threw his head back, his fingers clawing at Sasuke. Sasuke smirked, letting his teeth graze against Naruto's skin. He had no idea his neck was so sensitive…

He wondered how sensitive the rest of Naruto's body was.

Naruto got the message very quickly, as Sasuke started to pull at the fabric of Naruto's shirt—he vaguely played with the idea of cutting it off, but he didn't need to, it was already gone—and Sasuke's lips had been away from Naruto's skin for far too long—

He started with Naruto's collarbone—it was so easy to press kisses along—moving down to his nipple—now _that_ got a good reaction—

"Fu—hah—Sasuke—" Naruto's hips bucked up and Sasuke swore he could feel that Naruto was hard—in fact, he ought to check—

He slid his hand between them—it was much more obvious that he had meant it to be, but— _oh_ —yes, Naruto was definitely—

He heard Naruto make a noise—almost like a growl—and Sasuke found himself being thrown back—he opened his mouth to complain, but Naruto grabbed at his pants and pulled—

Sasuke watched, eyes wide, as Naruto undressed him. Naruto's eyes met his and he stared—very intently—at Sasuke as he lowered himself and slowly ran his tongue up Sasuke's length.

Sasuke forgot how to breathe.

Naruto took it as permission to take him in completely. Sasuke struggled to stay conscious—shuddering somewhere in between not having the strength to keep sitting up and not being able to tear his eyes away from the sight that Naruto made—and Naruto _must_ have known the sight that he made because his eyes—staring with an intensity Sasuke wasn't sure he'd ever seen in them—did not waver from Sasuke. Sasuke couldn't bring himself to mind.

He bit down on a moan as Naruto moved further down on him—a hand moving up Sasuke's thigh, squeezing as Naruto moved up again—and then back down—and—ah—up—Sasuke couldn't hold himself up any longer—down—his fingers clawed at the floor—up—his eyes squeezed shut—down—he could barely think—up—he felt completely lost in the pleasure—down—ah—in this—pleasure—hah—

"Na—ah—nngh—!"

The pleasure erupted—all at once—bursting through his body. He could feel Naruto still moving—he could hear his breathing hitch—as he swallowed—

Sasuke forced himself to lean up—just enough to see Naruto pull away, a string of saliva linking his lips to Sasuke's head—Naruto's eyes turned on him—he wiped his mouth with the back of his hand and crawled up Sasuke's body—Sasuke had never seen his eyes look so dark—

The kiss was much rougher—sloppier—he could feel Naruto panting against his lips—he could feel Naruto's desire so _clearly_ —

He pushed Naruto back, leaning over him to undress him fully. He hadn't gotten a chance to explore Naruto's lower body, yet…

He tossed the clothes somewhere behind him, taking a moment to appreciate the view in front of him—a naked Naruto, face flushed, lips parted, looking at him as if there was nothing more he wanted in that moment than Sasuke—

Sasuke let out a shuddering breath. He wasn't sure how he could feel this much lust after cumming not a moment ago.

He ran a hand down Naruto's shin, picking up his leg to press a kiss to his ankle—his heel—he eyed the blonde and ran his tongue up the side of his foot.

Naruto's eyes were wide, watching him—Sasuke saw his hands claw at the floor. Not bad.

He picked a toe at random and sucked.

"Sss—sa—hah," Naruto gasped. Sasuke smirked, marking that area for future reference, before pulling away to press a kiss against Naruto's knee. He ran his hand down Naruto's skin, letting the leg rest on his shoulder as he trailed kisses up the inside of Naruto's thigh. He could hear Naruto's breathing growing harsher—more uneven—and he could feel the pleasure start to build inside himself again—

He reached Naruto's hips, and felt Naruto's hand grab his. He looked up—Naruto's eyes had changed—they held a question—

Naruto's hand pressed Sasuke's against his entrance.

Oh.

 _Oh_.

The thrill that shot through Sasuke was so powerful—he would have stumbled if he were standing. He kissed Naruto with such ferocity that he pushed him backwards, sliding along the floor—Sasuke could barely contain himself—he—

He pressed a finger inside Naruto, pulling back and scanning his face. Naruto's eyes were wide—his brow furrowed, but he nodded, bringing his arms up around Sasuke so their lips could meet again. Sasuke nearly moaned at the feeling—Naruto did, although it may have had more to do with the finger Sasuke was moving inside of him—Sasuke felt his cock twitch at the thought—

"Ah—hah," Naruto broke the kiss, panting for air. Sasuke felt his patience waver already—he had only just gotten hard again and he could barely wait—

Naruto tightened his arms, pulling him in for another kiss.

"Sa—" he breathed, not bothering to move from Sasuke's lips, "you can—one more—hah—"

Sasuke kissed him, pressing in another finger. He pushed them in deep, spreading them apart—

"Hah—!" Naruto threw his head back—Sasuke kissed his neck, instead—he wondered, if he left a mark on Naruto, if it would stay—

Likely not, but there was no harm in trying.

Naruto sucked in a breath as Sasuke bit down on his neck—he licked and sucked at the skin until Naruto shifted—moving closer to him—

Naruto pulled at his hand—Sasuke removed his fingers slowly, desperately hoping he hadn't done anything wrong—

"Sorry," Naruto breathed, moving closer until he straddled Sasuke, "I just—I can't wait any longer."

Sasuke gave a sharp inhale.

Naruto grabbed him— _god_ his hand felt so good—and pressed Sasuke's cock against his entrance. Sasuke thought he might die of temptation—but then Naruto was moving—he was lowering himself—Sasuke was suddenly unbelievably glad he had already cum because he might have done so right here otherwise—

"Ah, fuck," Naruto paused, breathing harshly.

"Is it too—"

"No," Naruto cut him off, hugging him closer, "it's—hah—perfect. It's fucking perfect. I just—nngh—need a sec. Just—"

Naruto pulled back enough to kiss him. Sasuke felt a surge of lust rocket through him—he fought not to move his hips—he wanted to move so _badly_ —

Naruto's hands wrapped tighter around him as he breathed out—he could feel as Naruto relaxed his thighs, letting himself slip down further—slowly, so slowly—until he fell forwards, pressing his forehead against Sasuke's neck.

"Are you—"

"Yeah," Naruto sighed against his skin, "I just want to—feel this—for a sec. Just—I wanna memorize—"

Sasuke clutched him closer, his throat suddenly feeling very thick. From the way Naruto's voice cut off, he noticed.

"This—isn't temporary," he forced out, "you don't need to—memorize—"

Naruto pulled back, enough to stare at him with wide, shining eyes.

"This isn't—"

"Us," Sasuke said, "You and I. We're not temp—"

Naruto kissed him so harshly he nearly lost his balance—and then he _did_ lose his balance because Naruto started to _move_ —

He collapsed backward, Naruto following him. He lost his grip on Naruto's waist but he found it on his thigh—he could feel it flex as Naruto rode him—oh, _god_ , Naruto was riding him—

Naruto came down and Sasuke thrust to meet him.

"Ah—!" Naruto gasped, falling forward—shaking arms on either side of Sasuke the only thing holding him up—but his hips continued to move—Sasuke thrust up again—and again—Naruto's moans matched his pace—

"F—fuck," Naruto's elbows buckled, "I can't—I can't hold myself up—ah—Sa—"

Sasuke sat up, meeting Naruto's tongue with his own—still thrusting, thrusting—hah—

He pushed Naruto onto his back, thrusting in as far in as he could go.

"Nngh—"

"Ah—"

He pressed his lips to Naruto just to stifle the moans—the pleasure was overwhelming—it felt as if it would consume him whole—as if there was nothing else, in that moment, other than Naruto—but it wasn't enough—he wanted more—more of Naruto—he wanted _all_ of Naruto—

He broke the kiss, leaning back just enough to lift Naruto's legs up—they rested on his shoulders, and he leaned forward again—

"Nn—ah, fuck," Naruto gasped—Sasuke bent forward—closer, and Naruto moaned louder—he could feel himself starting to thrust faster—harder—he just couldn't seem to control it—

"Naruto," Sasuke felt the pleasure start build—it coiled—it twisted inside him—growing—growing—

Naruto's eyes opened—whatever he saw in Sasuke's face made his eyes go wide—

"Sas—Sa—" his eyes grew wider, "Sasuke—"

"Naru—"

"Fuck—Sasuke—ah!"

"Na—nngh!"

Sasuke's world exploded in ecstasy—it rocketed through his body with each thrust—he couldn't believe he was still able to move—

"Hah—ah," Naruto panted, cum squirting onto his stomach, "fu—hah—"

Sasuke matched the pace of Naruto's breath as it started to slow. He felt—very reluctant to exit Naruto, although he knew he would have to—eventually—he just—

"Sasuke," Naruto swallowed in between breaths, "can you—put my legs down?"

Sasuke blinked, taking a moment before he obeyed.

Naruto sighed in relief, reaching his arms up.

"Come here, you stupid teme," his voice sounded thick, but he was smiling.

Sasuke's heart skipped a beat.

"Should I—"

"Stay in me," Naruto seemed to read his mind, "just for a sec. Just for a—"

Sasuke leaned forward, meeting Naruto's lips for a gentle, slow kiss.

"I love you," Naruto sighed, just as they pulled apart, "that's what I—wanted to say—"

Sasuke swallowed thickly, holding Naruto closer. The words dove into his veins, swimming through them with a power he could feel—he could feel it in every inch of him—

"…Usuratonkachi."

He didn't know how to tell him in any other way.

From the way Naruto's hands clutched him tighter, face breaking out into a brilliant smile, he seemed to understand.

* * *

"Yeah, right," Naruto tilted his head just enough to look at Sasuke, "I don't think my spine is gonna recover anytime soon."

"Dobe," Sasuke kicked at his leg, "this is your fault."

"My fault?!"

"You wanted to stay here. And then you—you said—"

Sasuke swallowed, looking away. He still felt as if he was brimming with emotion.

Naruto only smiled.

"You asked," he pointed out, "and you bought this house—so it's your fault."

Sasuke gave him a weak glare.

"Keep talking, usuratonkachi—I'll use your clothes to clean us _both_ up."

Naruto laughed. Sasuke just rolled his eyes, trying to think of a better solution.

"Mmm," Naruto shifted, sighing, "d'you think we could use the baths, again? In the other house?"

Sasuke shot him a small smirk.

" _I_ can do whatever I want. Can _you_ make it there?"

"Shut up, teme—I can—" Naruto tried to roll over, "ah—mother _fucker_ —!"

Naruto cringed, freezing in place. Sasuke was at his side in an instant.

"Don't be stupid," he scowled at Naruto.

"You're the one who—"

"Will it hurt if I carry you?"

Naruto snorted.

"I'm not a damsel in distress, teme."

"No, you're a dobe," Sasuke rolled his eyes, "but apparently still in distress."

Naruto let out a surprised laugh.

"Yeah," he grinned a sleepy, dazed grin, "it'll probably still hurt. Not as much, though."

"Usuratonkachi," Sasuke muttered, "come on."

* * *

"Ah, fuck, that's better," Naruto groaned as he sank into the water.

Sasuke tossed their clothes on the floor, locking the door before he joined Naruto. If they happened to fall asleep here—at least they would have _some_ privacy.

Naruto let his head lean back on the ledge with a sigh. He watched Sasuke through half-lidded eyes.

"Why are you so far away?" He mumbled. Sasuke raised an eyebrow, unmoving.

"C'mon teme," he threw Sasuke a tired grin, eyes glittering, "don't make _me_ move…"

Sasuke snorted, but obediently moved forward. Naruto's hands caught him, pulling him to straddle the blonde's lap.

Naruto's smile grew. Sasuke rolled his eyes.

"The last time we were here nearly killed me," Naruto gave a soft laugh.

Sasuke merely raised an eyebrow, watching him. Naruto exhaled, reaching out to run his hands over Sasuke's shoulders, his back, his chest, his hips—

"You acted like it was nothing," Naruto's voice was nearly a whisper, "being here together—giving you that massage—"

"You're a moron," he muttered, pressing his forehead against Naruto's. The blonde's only response was a happy sigh.

"If my ass didn't hurt so much," he mumbled softly, "I would be _convinced_ this was a dream. This is…"

Naruto clutched him closer, closing his eyes. Sasuke swallowed thickly.

"I'm not convinced."

Naruto's eyes snapped open.

"What?"

"I said," Sasuke tilted his head so he could meet Naruto's lips properly, "I'm not convinced."

Naruto made a low noise as they kissed—his eyes were unfocused as they pulled apart. Sasuke met them nonetheless, willing the blonde to get the hint. He wanted to feel Naruto—very badly—this whole night had been _far_ too dreamlike for him to be fully convinced it wasn't a figment of his own twisted imagination—

"Sasuke…" Naruto whispered, "this isn't even _fair_ —"

"What's not fair about it?" Sasuke nipped at his ear, pressing kisses to his neck—he could see the makings of the mark he had left on Naruto—if only he could make it last longer—

"Ss—ah—damn it, teme," Naruto's head rolled back, "we just—you just—"

Naruto's hands squeezed his hips—Sasuke let them move with the grip, relishing in the way Naruto's breath hissed through his teeth.

"Sa—you can't—don't _play_ with me like this—"

Naruto's words cut off as Sasuke rolled his hips again.

"Ha—ah!" Naruto threw his head back, his own hips thrusting up against Sasuke—he could feel how hard Naruto was getting—

"That's it," Naruto growled—it was Sasuke's only warning before Naruto twisted, slamming Sasuke's back into the wall of the tub, still kneeling underneath him, "you have no idea— _no idea_ —"

Sasuke smirked—he was sure he had _some idea_ —

"You—fucking—" Naruto pressed their lips together, apparently needing to cut himself off—his tongue lashed out almost desperately—Naruto's hips thrust up, his cock pressing against Sasuke's ass—Sasuke could feel himself starting to shudder just at the thought—just at the feeling—

"Sasuke," Naruto pulled back, breathing against his skin, "god, Sasuke—"

Naruto's hands ran down his body, pausing on his hips, squeezing, moving down—Sasuke let his hips slip forward on Naruto's lap so he could rest a leg on the ledge of the tub—

Naruto sucked in a breath. His eyes flickered to Sasuke's, full of hesitation, full of desire—

"Usuratonkachi," he muttered, willing his face not to flush, "take the hi—nngh—"

Sasuke's words were stolen from him as he felt Naruto press a finger inside of him—it felt different, not altogether comfortable—but, somehow, he felt himself almost immediately begin to relax— _oh_ —Naruto was using his chakra—

"Is that—okay?"

Sasuke forced his eyes open—they couldn't seem to go past half-lidded—and reached out to pull the blonde in for a kiss. He felt Naruto's chakra—he knew that chakra, it was as familiar as his own—spreading through him, willing his muscles to relax—

"Mmph—hah—"

He broke the kiss, gasping, as Naruto pressed another finger in. It wasn't painful, not by a longshot, but it was—intense—he could feel every sensation as it if was being magnified through his veins—

"Sasuke," Naruto's breath danced against his skin—Sasuke stifled a shudder, "fuck, I want you so _bad_ —"

Sasuke's tongue darted out against his lips—he _loved_ that look in Naruto's eyes—that unrestrained, desperate lust—

He met the gaze with a smirk.

"Prove it," he leaned forward, lips grazing Naruto's, "usuratonkachi."

He shoved Naruto back, kicking his leg back down so he could straddle him properly. Naruto stared up at him with wide eyes as he lowered himself—down—

"Nngh—" he fell forwards, only a little, as the sensation started to overwhelm him. Naruto had his arms around him in a heartbeat, sitting up, pressing kisses to his body, running a hand up and down Sasuke's cock—

Sasuke exhaled, letting himself sink lower—the warmth of the water helped—and everything felt so slick—so soft—especially Naruto's skin…

"Sasuke," Naruto's lips moved against his skin—he touched Sasuke gently, almost reverently, "Sasuke—Sasuke—"

Sasuke found the strength to start to move—pressing his forehead to Naruto's shoulder as he rolled his hips—Naruto certainly seemed appreciative—

"Nngh— _hah_ —fuck, Sas—"

Naruto's hips started to match his movements—Sasuke let himself sink further into the blonde's grip—Naruto held him tight, kept him stable, kept him close—he sighed against his skin, relishing in the feeling of Naruto inside him—it was overwhelming—almost painful—but there really was something—perfect—

"Hah—!" Sasuke threw his head back as Naruto thrust up—something that Naruto had done— _gods_ , what was that?—it had felt so—so _strong_ —

Naruto paused, and Sasuke's eyes snapped open in a fierce glare.

"Are you—"

"Usuratonkachi—don't sto—ah!"

Naruto thrust up—hitting that _spot_ again—and Sasuke saw stars. His nails dug into Naruto's skin—he bit his lip in a desperate attempt to keep the moans at bay—Naruto didn't seem to have any intention of stopping again—if anything, he was thrusting harder—faster—hah—

Naruto's hand reached in between them, pressing Sasuke's cock against his stomach—his hand began to move in time with the thrusts and Sasuke felt what was left of his mind leave him—Naruto moved forward—lifting his legs—until Sasuke's back pressed against the wall of the tub—he trembled somewhere in between attempting to grab the ledge and hanging onto Naruto for dear life—Naruto won—

"Sasuke—hah—ah—Saa—"

Naruto's voice was rising—his thrusts were faster—his pace on Sasuke's cock uneven—messy—Sasuke sucked in a breath as Naruto opened his eyes—those _eyes_ —

"Sasuke—"

Naruto's emotions were written—clear as day—on his face—in those eyes—

"Sasuke—"

He felt himself stop breathing—he couldn't seem to do anything other than—other than feel—Naruto—Naruto—

"Sas—"

"Na—"

Sasuke grabbed the back of Naruto's neck, crashing their mouths together to stifle the scream—Naruto thrust in deep—hard—he slammed into him and Sasuke felt as if his entire world shifted—he thrust again and the pleasure—the _ecstasy_ —released, all at once—

"Nngh—"

"Mmph—"

They groaned, clinging to each other—riding out the echoes of their orgasm. Sasuke wasn't sure he would ever recover—it was—it was just too _much_ —

But the waves started to slow, and they broke apart, panting. Naruto clung to him, still, even as he pulled out.

Sasuke collapsed into the water, stifling the urge to groan as Naruto fell with him. He suddenly intensely understood the soreness Naruto had been feeling.

"Sasuke," Naruto sighed into his skin.

Sasuke forced himself to find his voice.

"We," he breathed out, exhausted, "are taking tomorrow off."

He didn't need to see the smile to know it was there.

"Deal."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well? Were you ready?
> 
> I'm pretty sure those are the longest sex scenes I've ever written. They felt the most intimate to me, at any rate. Let me know! Your reviews have been absolutely incredible. I've been in such a great mood all week :)
> 
> Lots more fun coming tomorrow!
> 
> Until then,
> 
> \- Kinomi


	5. A Lingering Aftermath

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> You're all the best! Seriously. My heart is filled with so much love - and that's a good thing, because I'm doing my best to pour it all into my next fics ;) I hope I keep living up to your expectations, you are all so, so kind!!

"Well, Sakura was definitely worried," Kakashi chuckled a little, "without Naruto's clones, it was as if half of the village had suddenly disappeared—"

"I took a day off," Naruto defended, frowning, "it's not _that_ —"

"Naruto," Kakashi gave a wane smile, "I'm fairly sure that was your first voluntary day off since you became a genin."

Sasuke stifled a smirk, busying himself with examining his fingernails.

"I, uh," Naruto's face reddened, "that's not…true…"

"Mhm," Kakashi sounded entirely disbelieving, "at any rate, here's everything you missed."

Sasuke watched, stomach dropping lower and lower, as Kakashi piled the papers in front of them. They…just kept _going_. Surely he was going to stop—there couldn't be _more_ —

Naruto groaned.

"Yes," Kakashi smiled, "it was a busy day."

"I'm never taking a day off again," Naruto muttered, sagging down in front of the pile.

"Yes you are," Sasuke replied instantly, leaning down— _slowly_. High threshold for pain or no, Sasuke was still sore. They hadn't exactly taken it easy yesterday.

Naruto's thoughts must have been along the same trail, because his face flushed a bright red as he smiled down at the papers in front of them. Sasuke found himself fighting his own smile.

Kakashi made a small noise.

"Well," his eyes flickered between them, "you know how to find me. I'm sure Shikamaru or Sakura would be happy to help, as well."

"A-ah," Naruto glanced up, smiling, "thanks, Kakashi-sensei."

"Mm, don't mention it," Kakashi paused just as the door began to close behind him, "oh, and congratulations."

And then he was gone.

"Wh—" Naruto blinked at the door, before staring down at the space between him and Sasuke, "we didn't even _do_ anything—how did he know?!"

Sasuke snorted. It didn't take a genius to read the blonde's giddiness—although Sasuke wasn't sure he was much better off.

"Guess he looked underneath the underneath."

* * *

"Sasuke, I've been meaning to talk to you," Sakura cornered him, "I've already tried to talk to Naruto, but you never actually know if he's paying attention—"

"What?"

"Has—well, I'm not sure he remembers—but has Naruto taught you the relaxation technique? If not—ask him to. It's very useful for sex."

Sasuke froze. He hadn't even known that she—that she _knew_ about them—had—had Kakashi—?!

"I can also teach you, if you'd like. But—there are, actually, a lot of other techniques that can enhance sensation and prevent pain—especially for anal sex. I can give you a pamphlet. Have you two been using lubricant?"

Sasuke began to back up. Sakura didn't seem to notice.

"It's not so much an issue for Naruto—with his healing, you know, but you should take care of yourself, Sasuke," she frowned for a moment, "not that I'm aware of the positioning. It depends on that, of course."

Sasuke placed his hand on the knob.

It was locked.

"I have the key, Sasuke," Sakura smiled and Sasuke felt a chill go down his spine, "now—have you been stretching adequately?"

Sasuke was going to _die_.

* * *

 "She—she—"

Sasuke could _still_ feel his face burning. That had been— _humiliating_ —

"I know, teme," Naruto was _clearly_ fighting a grin and Sasuke was going to punch him if he kept making that face, "she did it to me, too."

"But she—how did she—"

"And she did it to Ino-chan—and she was trained as a medic-nin, too," Naruto laughed, "I think she does it to all of her best friends. She's just looking out for us, teme."

Best…friends?

Sasuke stopped—the embarrassment falling from his grasp.

"I'm her…friend?"

Naruto looked at him as if he was insane.

"No shit, Sasuke," he stared at him, "of course you are."

Sasuke blinked.

"…did you really not realize?"

"I—she didn't—she doesn't—seem to—" his mind raced over their previous interactions, "…like me."

Naruto scratched his chin.

"Well, she's definitely over her crush."

Sasuke gave him a look.

"That's not what I mean."

Naruto sighed a little, moving closer to him.

"You're a stupid teme," he pressed a kiss to Sasuke's neck, "you don't realize how many people care about you—or how much."

Sasuke's brows furrowed.

Naruto pulled back.

"Want me to show you how much _I_ care?"

Sasuke took a moment to blink back into reality—

"Sakura-chan gave me those pamphlets too, you know—"

He cut Naruto off the best way he knew how.

* * *

It took him a week to seek out Sakura again. Not that he had been avoiding her—well, maybe, on some level, he had been, but—

"Oh, Sasuke! What br—"

"Am I your friend?" He surprised even himself with the bluntness.

Sakura stared at him for a moment, before giving a soft smile.

"Mm," she seemed to think, "I'd say you're more family than a friend. Can't choose your family."

"You—"

"You can't choose it. I didn't choose it, at least," she paused, looking away.

"You and Naruto—and Kakashi-sensei, even, are," she tapped her fingers on the table for a moment, as if looking for the right word, "important—in a way that is different from all other relationships I have."

She turned back to him.

"You feel it too, don't you, Sasuke?"

* * *

There was absolutely nothing Sasuke wanted to do less than get out of this bed. He was supposed to be up nearly an hour ago, but—

"You've been working too hard," Naruto hovered over him, frowning.

"Like you're one to talk," Sasuke snarled, gripping at the sheets as if they would help him up. He felt awful—so hideously _weak_ , he wanted to scream from the frustration—he was stronger than this, damn it—

"You need to take today off," Naruto crouched beside him, pushing him back down, "sleep through the day, okay?"

Sasuke scowled at him.

"I'm fine—I don't need to—"

"You're not fine," Naruto pulled back, his eyes full of worry, "you're sick."

"I'm not—"

"I mean it, Sasuke—don't make me get Sakura-chan," he warned.

Sasuke's mouth snapped shut. Their old teammate took their health…very seriously.

"…fine," he muttered, rolling away from Naruto. This bed felt so—fucking _hot_ —he was sweating like crazy—

Naruto pulled the sheets over top of him, tucking them in closer.

"I know you have a fever," he said, "but you need to stay warm."

Sasuke rolled, slowly, letting Naruto tuck the blankets around him. He didn't have the strength to fight him—in fact, he felt like he could barely stay awake for a moment longer.

Naruto pressed a kiss to his lips.

"M'sick, Naruto," he mumbled as the blonde pulled away. Did the fox's healing help with illness, too? Sasuke hadn't really considered it before…

"I know," Naruto gave a soft smile, kissing him again, "but idiots can't catch colds, remember?"

Sasuke snorted, mumbling a soft, "usuratonkachi…"

"I'll be back to check on you, teme…I lo…"

Naruto's words filtered into his mind, but he was already asleep before any reply had the chance to form.

* * *

"Nngh—Naru…to?" Sasuke spun as he felt something strange—and _cold_ —on his skin.

"Hi," Naruto's soft smile greeted him—his voice was gentle and quiet, "I didn't mean to wake you—"

"What is…?" Sasuke glanced down at himself. Naruto had some sort of…cream?

"Sakura-chan gave it to me," he said, "but—um—if you're awake, there's also a couple medicines I got. Are you up for…?"

Sasuke dragged his consciousness up a few levels.

"Mm," he hummed—it had meant to be an agreement, but his lips weren't cooperating…

Distantly, he heard Naruto laugh.

"Here, just for a sec," Naruto held out some pills in his direction. Sasuke wanted to do nothing less than sit up to take them.

"Just these and then you can go back to bed, teme. Come on."

Glaring—and feeling the ache in every inch of his body—Sasuke forced himself to sit up. He took the pills and downed the glass of water, before shuffling back down the bed, turning away from Naruto.

"Happy?" He slurred, wanting nothing more than to go back to sleep.

"Very," Naruto's voice filtered around him. There was a pause—and then Sasuke jumped.

"What is that?" He scowled—the thing was _cold_ and it kept waking him—

"It'll help, Sasuke," Naruto said gently, "just try to sleep, I'm gonna rub this in for a while, okay? Once you get used to it, it won't be so bad."

Sasuke made a low noise, hissing a breath through his teeth as he felt Naruto's hands on him again. Everything just felt—so _sensitive_ right now. It was as if his entire being was bruised—

"Try to relax, teme," Naruto muttered.

"Easy for you to say," he hissed, fighting the urge to move away from Naruto's hands.

Naruto pulled back, letting out a breath.

"Is it that painful?"

"It's not _painful_ ," well, not to him, anyways, "it's just—uncomfortable—"

There was a pause.

"It's to help with the ache," Naruto said quietly, "I have about half an hour left of my lunch but if you want to just sleep, I can—"

Sasuke's eyes opened.

Damn usuratonkachi…always worrying over nothing…

"Stay," his voice was nearly silent, but Naruto heard it nonetheless—at least, it seemed that way from the way his eyes widened—

"I'm here," Naruto whispered, softly taking his hand. He immediately leaned into the touch.

"You can," he started, letting out a quiet breath, "use the cream again. If it will help."

"Sakura-chan said it would," Naruto said quietly.

"…kay," he muttered, shifting to give Naruto better access to his body. His eyelids felt so _heavy_ …

He closed his eyes as Naruto let go of his hand—he heard a lid being unscrewed, and then felt Naruto's lips press against his cheek.

"I'm gonna start now," he warned. Sasuke didn't reply—but he _did_ flinch as the cold sensation returned, rubbing over his skin. It was so contrary to the way Naruto's hands _usually_ felt—

He forced his eyes open.

"Is that okay?"

Naruto peered down at him—worry written all over his face.

Sasuke suddenly didn't mind the sensation as much.

"It's better," he swallowed, "now."

Naruto gave him a brilliant, relieved smile.

"Good," he turned his attention back to his fingers. Sasuke fought the urge to close his eyes…on one hand, he felt completely exhausted, but on the other hand, Naruto…

"Turn over," Naruto spoke, "I should do your back."

Sasuke frowned, unmoving.

"…what is it?" Naruto moved closer to him.

He didn't want Naruto to be hidden from his view…he wanted to see him. Or feel him, at least—beyond the strange chill of the medicine—

"Sasuke?"

"I want to see you," his voice was muffled—slurred—and he was far too busy feeling awful to be as embarrassed as he ought to have—

Naruto's face lit up in disbelieving delight.

"You—" he ran a hand through his hair—or rather, swiped at it with the base of his palm to avoid getting the cream on himself, "you…teme—"

He gave a soft laugh. Sasuke found himself smiling along without his consent.

"Here," Naruto moved up on the bed, "I have an idea. But you'll have to move a little. Is that okay?"

Sasuke let out a noise of discontent, shifting nonetheless.

Naruto moved up, pushing Sasuke until he rolled over on his stomach, and then pulling him up so he could rest his head in Naruto's lap.

 _There_ was the warmth…

"Is this okay?" Naruto asked gently.

Sasuke only settled in further in response, letting his eyes flicker closed. He didn't even protest, this time, as he felt the cooling sensation run along his back.

Distantly, he heard Naruto chuckle.

"It's a good thing I brought some work with me here," he said, fingers moving in slow circles, "you're not gonna let me leave, are you?"

"Your fault," Sasuke mumbled, rocking in and out of consciousness.

He could hear Naruto's smile.

"I—fuck—" there was a pause, "I love you so much, you absolute asshole."

Sasuke couldn't muster the strength to defend himself. He just felt so…comfortable…

"…love you...too…"

Sasuke's world went dark.

* * *

"You have too much energy," Sasuke muttered, trying to focus for the thousandth time; it had already been a week since he had been sick and he was _still_ playing catch up—

"I can't help it!" Naruto stood—again—stretching his arms up, "we've been cooped up here for _days_ —it's been like a week since we sparred—"

"We sparred two days ago," Sasuke raised an eyebrow at him.

"It's too long!"

Sasuke rolled his eyes. Naruto moved around him, resting his chin on Sasuke's shoulder, letting out a strained sigh.

Sasuke frowned.

"What—"

Naruto pressed his face into Sasuke's neck. His voice was muffled—soft—but Sasuke heard it all the same—

"I want you."

Ah. So _that's_ what this was actually about.

"We had sex this morning," Sasuke muttered, flipping a page.

"Yeah," Naruto breathed out against his skin—Sasuke suppressed a shiver, "and I can't stop thinking about it…"

Sasuke stifled a smile. It had been rather...intimate.

"We still have work to do here, Naruto," even as the words left him, Sasuke felt himself relaxing into the feeling of Naruto's arms, wrapped around him—he turned his face just as Naruto looked up—

It was automatic, how their lips met…as if without a single thought. Sasuke didn't think he could have stopped it even if he wanted to—

Naruto let out a shuddering breath as they pulled apart.

"That really didn't help," he whispered.

Sasuke smirked.

"No," Naruto whined, sagging against him, "don't look at me like that. You're so fucking sexy when you look at me like that—"

"I'm what, now?" Sasuke's eyebrows nearly reached his hairline.

"You heard me," Naruto muttered, using the words to move his lips against Sasuke's skin—it was getting dangerously close to a kiss—

"Naruto," he said, just as he felt the blonde start to suck, "are you trying to torture _both_ of us?"

"Mm," Naruto moved to nip at Sasuke's ear, "if I have to suffer, you do too."

"That doesn't sound like your usual policy, Hokage-sama," Sasuke let his head roll back—it gave Naruto better access to his skin…

Naruto froze.

Sasuke opened his eyes—his smirk coming back in full force as he took in Naruto's expression. There was nothing hidden about the shock—or the desire—in Naruto's eyes—

In a flash, Naruto pulled Sasuke out of his chair—twisting him around, crashing their lips together—Sasuke felt his back hit the desk as Naruto pushed up against him—between his legs— _oh_ —

"I've never heard you call me that," Naruto's eyes were hooded with lust—his lips barely an inch from Sasuke's.

That was because he hadn't. Of course, had he known that _this_ would be Naruto's reaction…

Sasuke smirked.

"Does it do something for you?" He tilted his head to eye Naruto.

"It does when _you_ say it," Naruto muttered against his skin—he was so firmly pressed up against Sasuke that he was nearly sitting on the desk, now—in fact, he swore Naruto's hips were starting to rock—

"We're in public, Naruto," he pressed a kiss to the blonde's neck. His protests were weak at best, but he still felt the need to say them.

"We'll sense it if anyone comes," Naruto's voice was quiet, breathless—Naruto was grinding up against him, now—

"You'll have to be quiet," Sasuke muttered, the pleasure washing over him—

"Kiss me, then."

The last of Sasuke's restraint crumbled as his lips met Naruto's—Naruto was immediately moaning into the kiss, his hands grabbing at Sasuke's pants, pulling at his own—his patience had clearly run out, long ago—

Sasuke broke the kiss as he heard a drawer open, opening his eyes to see Naruto pull out…lubricant?

"Did you plan this?" He gave the blonde an incredulous look.

Naruto kissed him again—

"No," Naruto said, in between kisses, "but I knew I'd break eventually—"

He moaned into Sasuke's mouth as their cocks pressed together—how Naruto had managed to hide that erection, Sasuke had no idea—

He heard the cap click open—Naruto squirted some lube onto his fingers—

"You don't need to stretch me, Naruto," he said, trying to hide how breathless he was, "it's faster—I'm not delicate—"

Naruto kissed his words away, pressing his fingers against Sasuke's entrance—

"Too bad, Sasuke-teme—"

His fingers entered him.

"—I like feeling you."

Sasuke felt them spread apart—he closed his eyes, just as Naruto's other hand began to pump his cock—ah, that—at this rate, Naruto was going to have to kiss _him_ to shut him up—

"N—hah—Naru—"

Naruto seemed to get the message from the way his lips captured Sasuke's—Sasuke's hand reached out to grab something—anything—he felt the papers fall off the desk but there was nothing—ah—nothing he could do to care—Naruto's fingers spread and—

"Mmph—!"

Too good—this was too good—Sasuke was—

He pushed Naruto away from him, wrenching his eyes open as he reached for the lube—Naruto flicked the cap open just as Sasuke grabbed it—he squeezed it into Naruto's hand—there was something—something incredibly erotic about watching Naruto spread it over himself—

Sasuke pushed himself up, turning as Naruto moved forwards—Naruto could get a better angle from behind, like this—

It was only a moment before he felt Naruto press up against him. One of his hands reached over, clasping Sasuke's hand until their fingers intertwined—and then—he pushed forwards—

"Nngh—" Sasuke ducked down, biting his lip to stifle the sound—he felt Naruto bite down on his neck, moaning against it—at least the blonde was trying to be quiet, too—

"Na—ruto, move—" he panted, falling further against the desk—it was a good thing Naruto's other arm was wrapped around him, because Sasuke's knees were rapidly growing weaker—

Naruto started to rock, slowly, softly—Sasuke felt his breath leave him with each thrust—and then Naruto started to speed up—going deeper—and Sasuke knew—he _knew_ he would be too loud—

Naruto hit his prostate and Sasuke ripped his arm away from Naruto's, clapping it over his mouth—

"Ah—mmph—!"

"Sasu—ke," Naruto gasped—Sasuke suddenly realized it was the first time his lips had left Sasuke's skin in a long while, "can I—hah—see your face—?"

Naruto's pace slowed as Sasuke began to shift—he wanted to see Naruto, too—he rolled just as Naruto pulled out of him—Sasuke mourned the loss—

"Whatever you want," Sasuke reached up, wrapping his hand around the back of Naruto's neck—he waited until Naruto's lips barely touched his, "Hokage-sama."

Naruto nearly melted against him—crashing their lips together, thrusting forwards—it was only Naruto's moan that stifled Sasuke's own as they began to move—it felt so—hah—Naruto knew _exactly_ how to move—where to hit—ah—

He could feel Naruto starting to tense as they moved—starting to tremble in Sasuke's grip—he could feel himself start to do the same—he clutched Naruto closer, praying the blonde wouldn't pull away—that he would never pull away—that he would—ah—Naruto—

He met the wave of pleasure as it came—as it exploded through him, rushing through his veins as if it was water, finally bursting through the dam that had held it back—he dug his nails into Naruto's skin, unwilling to let him go—unwilling for the pleasure to end—not yet—not _yet_ —

Slowly, softly, Sasuke came back to reality. He unclenched his hand, relaxing his body to fall back against the table—Naruto fell forwards with him, even as the kiss broke—

"Naruto—"

"I know," Naruto interrupted him, laughing against his skin, "I know. I'll clean you up."

He pulled back to grin at Sasuke—eyes sparkling. Sasuke snorted, giving Naruto's face a soft shove.

"And the papers."

"And the papers," Naruto laughed, leaning in to kiss Sasuke's nose, "I will. I love you."

Sasuke only watched him, smiling softly.

"Get to it, then, usuratonkachi."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yes, Naruto heard Sasuke. Yes, he absolutely spent the next hour and a half quietly sobbing to himself. Yes, he's now partially convinced he hallucinated (because it's just too good to be true). No, Sasuke has no idea what he said :)
> 
> And Sasuke has now learned the most effective way to get Naruto and him somewhere private. It's a signal he saves for emergencies ;) 
> 
> Lots of heartwarming stuff today! Maybe that's everyday, though? I hope I made you guys smile.
> 
> See you tomorrow!
> 
> \- Kinomi


	6. Together

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm so sorry this is so much later than usual! I had a very long, snowy bus ride ;_;

"For his birthday?"

Sasuke covered up his flinch with a glare—in this crowd of people, he hadn't sensed Sakura's presence at all. She didn't seem fazed, only looking past him to the window he had been staring into.

The window of the jewelry store.

"Or for something else?"

She gave him a knowing look. He scowled at her, promptly turning on his heel. The girl somehow managed to interpret it as an invitation to walk alongside him.

It wasn't as if it was a plan he had been seriously considering—it was just a fleeting, spur-of-the-moment thought—nothing of any actual value—

"You know he'd say yes," she said quietly.

Sasuke shook his head.

"I'm not—" he let out a quiet breath, "there's no point to it. Nothing would change."

She raised an eyebrow.

"Is that your main issue? I figured it was more about making your relationship public."

Oh. Well, that…

"Which—for the record, aside from privacy—isn't really an issue. The Hokage generally doesn't have a public relationship for the protection of their spouse, but considering Naruto's already run all over the country alerting everyone in sight that you're his most precious person—"

Sasuke's face flushed.

"—I think that ship has sailed."

"And besides," she laughed, "the _real_ question is can you stomach another Naruto speech? Because that's what you'd be asking for."

A bubble of amusement rose in Sasuke's chest. Yes—Naruto would absolutely give some cheesy, long-winded, heartfelt speech about their bond—about how much Sasuke meant to him—about how what they had between them could never truly break—

He swallowed.

Maybe—

Maybe it wasn't such a bad idea…

* * *

Kakashi stared at him, eyes wide.

"Hypothetically."

He appeared to shake himself.

"Have you—have you asked Naruto?"

"Ah," Sasuke looked away, "no. Not—yet."

He _knew_ Naruto would say yes—he _knew_ —but standing here, under Kakashi's scrutinizing gaze—he was suddenly far less confident.

He swallowed thickly.

"I—ah—" he shuffled back, making the motions to leave, but—

"Sasuke," Kakashi called out. His visible eye looked…suspiciously bright.

Sasuke turned, feeling as if his throat had been sewn shut.

"If—no— _when_ Naruto agrees," he said, "I would. I would be honoured to be there in the place of your family."

Sasuke inhaled—Sakura's words chimed through his mind like a bell—

' _You feel it too, don't you, Sasuke?'_

"Not in the place of," the nerves hummed through his veins—he willed himself not to stutter, "as. As my family."

There was a pause—and then Sasuke found himself stumbling backwards with the force of Kakashi's embrace.

He didn't move for a long while.

* * *

"Good morning," he muttered quietly, pressing a kiss to Naruto's neck, his jawline, his cheek…

"Sasuke…?" Naruto's eyes were red and unfocused, but the smile broke his face with ease.

"Kakashi is covering for us today," he continued, tracing his fingers along Naruto's body—it really was incredibly convenient that the blonde slept shirtless—

"Mmm," Naruto sighed happily, "wait—already? We took a day off not even like—"

"Usuratonkachi," Sasuke cut him off, "it's your birthday."

Naruto sucked in a breath. Sasuke pressed a kiss to the corner of his mouth.

"…I forgot." Naruto's voice was quiet—more serious than it ought to have been. Definitely less excited than it ought to have been.

"Hm," Sasuke trailed kisses along his chest, "let me help you remember…"

He met Naruto's lips with a soft kiss—smirking at the small noise Naruto made as he pulled away. It would have been so easy to keep kissing the blonde—but no, not yet. They had plenty of time—and Sasuke was going to take full advantage of the fact.

He leaned just enough to eye the basket off to the side of the bed. Embarrassing as it had been, Sakura had been more than willing to give him advice—and materials—once he had approached her. He reached over to grab some of the oils—two drops of the purple, one drop of green—

"Sas…?"

"Take off your pants."

Naruto took barely a second to obey, kicking at the blankets until they were off the bed entirely. Sasuke fought a smirk at the slightly dazed, wondrous look in his eyes.

There was always something satisfying about catching Naruto off guard.

"Turn over."

Naruto rolled, propping his head on his arms so he could continue to stare at Sasuke. Sasuke didn't mind. Naruto's face always told him everything he needed to know.

He started on Naruto's calf, mixing the oils together with his hand. If the sharp inhale was anything to go by, they started to work fairly quickly. He could feel the soft tingling sensation begin in his own palm—some strange combination between warmth and cooling—

He moved up, spreading the oil along Naruto's thigh, massaging it into the skin. He pushed up, moving his thumb Naruto's inner thigh—up—he could feel himself getting aroused just from touching the blonde, but he couldn't give in—not yet—

Letting out a low breath, he moved his ministrations to the other leg, adding a bit more oil as he did so. Naruto's eyes had fluttered closed, he noticed, and he hoped the blonde hadn't fallen back asleep—

His hand moved—almost of its own free will—up to massage Naruto's ass. He could feel the throbbing need pulsing between his legs with each movement—he had wanted to take this slow, but at this rate—

Naruto turned around, grabbing at Sasuke to pull him down for a fierce kiss. Sasuke—automatically—wrapped his hand around Naruto's cock— _rock_ hard—spreading the oil over it—Naruto groaned, shuddering in his grip—

Sasuke broke free of the kiss to grab the lube. The rest of the basket—it would have to wait for another day—

Naruto nearly knocked it out of his hand in his attempt to pull off Sasuke's clothes—not that Sasuke was complaining. His shirt was thrown to the ground—his pants kicked to his ankles, and then, well, they'd fall off completely eventually—

He crawled forward until he was sitting between Naruto's legs—the blonde made quite a sight, naked, legs splayed apart, lips swollen and parted, eyes hooded with desire—

Sasuke squirted some lube onto his fingers—experimentally pressing it to his own leg for a moment as he channeled his chakra through it; he'd tried it before, obviously, but he was a lot less—distracted—

Naruto pulled him down for a kiss, each movement of his lips chipped away at Sasuke's restraint—he could feel Naruto's hands on him, the way they shuddered, the way they clawed at his skin—

He broke the kiss, keeping his eyes closed as he pressed a finger inside Naruto. He could hear the hitch in his breath—and then the way it quickened—but Sasuke forced himself to focus— _focus_ —on the feeling of Naruto, differentiating his finger, the lube—and then—letting his chakra spread—

"Nngh—ah! Fu—" Naruto sucked in a breath, "hah—what—ah—"

Sasuke didn't move, scanning Naruto's face—

"Was that electricity, teme?" Naruto gave him a dazed, disbelieving grin.

"A little," Naruto didn't seem hurt—or angry—so that was a good—

"Do it again."

Sasuke smirked, relief flooding his body—followed by a much stronger excitement—

He let his finger move, exploring—letting his chakra accentuate the movements—he didn't really need to tell it where to go—it just felt natural—

"Ss—hah— _fuck_ ," Naruto threw his head back, bucking his hips.

Sasuke pushed in another finger—Naruto brow furrowed, but he was nodding, hands scratching at the sheets below him—

"Yeah—hah—nngh," Naruto's head rolled—it was as if he couldn't stay still with the way he was squirming underneath him—

Sasuke lowered his body, pressing kisses to Naruto's skin as he spread out his fingers—he wondered if he could channel his chakra through only his lips…it seemed like a good enough time to try—he placed his lips on Naruto's hipbone—

"Ah—!"

Naruto stared at him, eyes wide—Sasuke smirked, lowering his lips again—his eyes didn't leave Naruto's and Naruto's didn't close—even as Sasuke's lips met Naruto's thigh—and Naruto was suddenly gasping for air—

He pressed in another finger.

" _Fuck_ —god, Sasuke—I—"

Sasuke moved up, focusing back on the fingers, reaching with them, stretching them out—he kissed Naruto's neck, nipped at his ear—

"You…?" He prompted.

"I—ah! Haah," he panted, "I—want—I need—"

Sasuke smirked against his skin.

"Sasuke— _please_ —"

Sasuke had his fingers out of Naruto in a heartbeat. He squeezed the lube again—it was probably too much, now, but he rubbed it on himself nonetheless—and pulled Naruto up onto his lap. Naruto's hands wrapped around his shoulders, his breath shuddering against Sasuke's ear as he began to lower himself—every time—this was—Sasuke would never tire of this—

"Nngh," the moan left Sasuke against his permission, but he was far too busy fighting the urge to thrust to do anything else—they still had the rest of the day—he couldn't—he had to make sure that Naruto—that Naruto—ah—Naruto…

"Sasuke," Naruto breathed, his hips starting to move, "Sas—mmph—"

Naruto pulled back to press their lips together—and Sasuke suddenly felt entirely overwhelmed—his lips hummed with a feeling—a familiar— _oh—_ it was Naruto's chakra on his lips—

Two could play at that game.

He pushed back—letting his chakra pulse forward through his lips—on _their_ lips—he could feel the chakra mix, between them—and Naruto—moaning into his mouth—his hips grinding down, meeting Sasuke with each thrust—

"Hah," Naruto panted, nails scratching at Sasuke's back, "Sas—I—ah—"

His entire being hummed with pleasure—he could feel Naruto all around him—it was—it was almost too _much_ —it was—hah—

"Sasuke," Naruto moaned—Sasuke felt him link his ankles together behind Sasuke's back—it brought their hips so much _closer_ , "Sasuke—nngh—"

"Naruto—"

Naruto's chakra weaved its way around him—it wrapped, it coiled around the pleasure—it magnified it—it was too much—Sasuke could barely _breathe_ —

"Sa—" Naruto's voice was rising—Sasuke's eyes snapped open—

"Sasuke—" it rose again—

"I—" higher—

"I—" and higher—

"I—" and—higher—

Naruto slammed his head back with a yell and Sasuke lost control completely—the pleasure lashed through him like a whip—his vision blacked out and in that moment, the only thing he could feel was Naruto—

Slowly—softly—his senses returned to him—Naruto's legs fell apart, his forehead still pressed against Sasuke's shoulder. Sasuke nudged it up enough to press a kiss to his lips.

"Happy birthday, usuratonkachi."

Naruto stared at him with a dazed smile.

"I gotta have birthdays more _often_."

* * *

The sheets were probably ruined, in retrospect. He wasn't quite sure how he could have saved them. At least it had been well worth it…

He crumpled them together in a ball, looking up as he heard the shower turn off. He had played with the idea of joining Naruto, but they were supposed to be at the restaurant already. He hadn't realized it was so late.

He fiddled with the box, flipping it around in his hands before slipping it into his pocket. He wouldn't give Naruto the ring—not right now, anyways—but he had something smaller, like a trial run—

"Hey," Naruto hadn't bothered using a towel, Sasuke noticed. He—also—appeared to be well on his way to fully erect, and he was giving Sasuke a very, very intense look—Sasuke swallowed—damn it, Naruto, they had somewhere to _be_ —

"What's that?" Naruto gestured to the small package Sasuke held.

"Your present," he answered simply, holding it out.

Naruto blinked.

"Was—was that," Naruto gestured towards the bed, "not it?"

Sasuke fought a smile.

"…part of it."

Naruto's laugh was filled with delight—and a touch of wonder.

"Well—okay," he smiled, "I'm not gonna complain—"

Sasuke held the box out, studiously ignoring the way his stomach twisted—it might not be a _perfect_ gift, but it was important—to him, at least—

Naruto inhaled sharply.

"This is…"

Sasuke furiously scanned his face for any hint of reaction—anything that might indicate what he was feeling—if he hated it—

Naruto pulled the necklace from its box—it wasn't anything expensive, just a silver chain with the Uchiha clan symbol—but Naruto cradled it gently, his eyes wide. The coil around Sasuke's chest pulled tighter.

"…for me…?" Naruto's voice was barely a whisper.

Sasuke swallowed—his voice had abandoned him and all he could do was nod—

"Sasuke," Naruto breathed, "I'm—you—"

He gently unclipped the necklace to loop it around his neck, clutching at it all the while. Sasuke swallowed—the appearance of Naruto, clad in nothing but his symbol—naked, but marked by _Sasuke_ —marked as _his_ —

"Sasuke," Naruto said again, his eyes hooded, "come here."

It was all Sasuke could do to obey.

* * *

"What do you mean?" Naruto jogged to catch up to him—they were hellishly late at this point, "where are we going?"

Sasuke gave him an incredulous look, pausing outside of the building. It had taken some time to track Ichiraku's down, after the move—but _surely_ Naruto knew exactly where they were.

"Where else would we go, usuratonkachi?"

Naruto blinked at him, slowly moving to look at the sign.

"We— _oh_ —"

Sasuke shoved him through the door.

"Surprise!"

Naruto froze. Sasuke surreptitiously moved away from the blonde as the crowd barreled towards them. He had dealt with these people enough in getting them to _be_ here, thank you very much—

"What—"

"Happy birthday, Naruto-kun!" Lee clapped Naruto on the back hard enough that the blonde stumbled a few steps forward.

"You're so late—I'm _starved_ ," Ino smiled, brushing her hair out of her eyes.

"What were you doing—sparring or something?" Kiba peered around Shino's shoulder, "we could feel your chakras just going _nuts_."

Naruto's face flushed.

"Um," he said, eyes flickering to Sasuke, "yeah—sparring…"

"On your birthday," he rolled his eyes, "you never change."

Naruto chuckled nervously, biting his lip and avoiding Sasuke's gaze. Sasuke stifled a smirk.

"Wait," Naruto's head snapped up, "didn't you have a mission today? And—Sakura—you said—"

"I did," she smiled, "but Sasuke rearranged everyone's schedules. He planned this whole thing."

 _Damn it_ , Sakura—

"Sasuke?" All heads turned to him—Naruto's eyes were so much brighter than the rest—

He gave an awkward shrug, looking away.

There was a pause. The eyes burned into him—Sasuke wondered how easy it would be to escape—if he could open a hole up into the ground to swallow him whole—or—better yet—swallow _them_ whole—

"Enough talk," Chouji—Sasuke had never felt more affection for the man than in this moment—spoke, "let's eat!"

The crowd boomed with excitement—everyone scuttling to their chairs—Naruto had a place at the head of the table, he noticed—but he—he wouldn't stop staring at Sasuke—

"Sasuke-san," Iruka's voice made him look away from the dobe, "we saved you the spot beside Naruto."

He gestured for Sasuke to follow him. Sasuke obeyed, quietly padding over to his chair.

"I wanted to thank you," Iruka continued, using the boom of the crowd to muffle their conversation, "for doing all this. I was so shocked when you asked that it completely slipped my mind—"

He laughed. Sasuke shifted awkwardly.

Iruka's laugh trailed off, his eyes turning to Naruto—who still hadn't managed to come sit down. It seemed every time he tried, someone else caught his attention—pulling him into some loud, excited conversation—but Naruto's eyes kept drifting to Sasuke just as Sasuke's did to him—

"He's been so happy," Iruka gave a content sigh, "since you came back."

Sasuke swallowed.

"I know it wasn't easy," Iruka turned to him, "so I wanted to thank you. Really, truly—from the bottom of my heart—thank you."

Sasuke looked away. What was he supposed to say to that? He had never intended on staying in Konoha—it was never the _plan_ —but Naruto was so good at destroying Sasuke's plans—

"And—if you ever need anything from me at all—please don't hesitate to ask."

The weight in Sasuke's pocket was suddenly much heavier.

He knew—Naruto considered Iruka to be family. And he had already spoken to Sakura—and Kakashi—and that left—that left Iruka. There was no one the blonde considered closer to a father…

"Actually," he turned to the man, hand resting on the box in his pocket, "there is one thing."

* * *

"Every time we do something like this," Sakura fiddled with her chopsticks, "I always want to plan the next time. But next time always takes so long to come…"

"Because managing you all is like herding cats," Sasuke muttered.

Sakura laughed.

Naruto grinned, squeezing Sasuke's thigh. His hand hadn't moved from the place all night.

"Hey—pass the soy sauce!" Kiba called from the other end of the table.

Ino rolled her eyes, grabbing the bottle.

"Not salty enough for you, dog boy?"

"Not nearly enough," he threw a wide grin at her disgusted expression.

"Naruto," Sai's voice caught his attention—he turned away from the conversation down the table. He still wasn't entirely sure what his feelings were towards the strange man—technically part of Team 7, but he wasn't, not to Sasuke, "why is the Uchiha clan symbol around your neck?"

The table went silent.

Naruto's hand moved from Sasuke's thigh to snap up to his neck.

"Um," Naruto said.

"Because Sasuke considers Naruto his family, Sai," Sakura—constantly redeeming herself, in Sasuke's eyes—came to their rescue. Sasuke saw Naruto visibly relax.

Sai's eyes—impossible to read—turned to look at Sasuke.

"Is that so?"

Sasuke was tempted not to reply—he really was—but Naruto's hand had moved back to his thigh, his thumb running slowly along it—

"As a brother?"

Sasuke twitched, his eyes turning to Naruto. He knew that Sai was trying to get a rise out of him—as usual, despite Naruto's consistent protests to the contrary—but Sasuke was considering something far more important. Sasuke had never really intended to keep them a secret—he was just a private person, and Naruto knew that.

He was sure Naruto would have told the entire village, otherwise.

Sasuke turned back to his food.

"More like a spouse," he said calmly.

The table froze.

Sasuke continued to eat.

SLAM!

"I fucking _knew_ it!" Kiba slapped his hands on the table as he jumped to his feet.

"Sit _down_ ," Shino yanked at him.

Shikamaru calmly held a hand out over the table, gesturing at Chouji—who, with a groan, pulled out his wallet. Ino snickered, giving him a playful nudge.

"C-congratulations, Naruto-kun," Hinata gave a soft smile, "and you too, Sasuke-kun."

Sasuke nodded his acceptance—eyes flickering back to Naruto, who still seemed frozen.

"…Naruto?"

He suddenly felt very nervous. Naruto—Naruto hadn't wanted to keep them a secret, had he? Sure, Sasuke's name wasn't exactly clean—and neither was the Uchiha name—but Naruto had never—he had never—

Sasuke thoughts were thrown out of his mind as Naruto nearly launched himself at him, crashing their lips together. Sasuke was vaguely aware of the howling around him—the catcalls and the whistles—but he was far more intensely aware of the way Naruto was nearly melting against him—how was it that he could feel someone else's emotions so _clearly_ —

Naruto pulled away and Sasuke's eyes flickered open—he felt dazed, the sounds around him muffled, out of focus—as if he was underwater—

"Well," Kakashi's voice rang out, "it seems we have more to celebrate than just Naruto's birthday, hm?"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> One chapter left! This went by way too fast. What did you guys think? Let me know! <3 Your comments and kudos really mean the world to me!!
> 
> Until tomorrow,
> 
> \- Kinomi


	7. The Promise of a Lifetime

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well, this is it! The last chapter! It feels weird, doesn't it? Thank you all so much for following along with me! The support has been incredible!!

It took very little convincing for Naruto to agree to stay at their house that night. They had finally gotten the water running—and the mattress was the first piece of furniture Sasuke invested in—

They barely made it in the door before Naruto slammed his back against the wall.

"Sasuke," Naruto breathed kisses against his skin, "you've—you've made this day so— _perfect_ —"

Sasuke swallowed as Naruto reached under his shirt.

"I feel like," he ran his fingers underneath Sasuke's waistband, "I need to _repay_ you somehow—"

Sasuke's shirt fell to the ground.

"Can you think of any way I could do that?"

Naruto tilted his head to look up at Sasuke, his hands paused in tracing a path down his chest—

"Usuratonkachi," he grabbed Naruto by the collar, "come here."

Their lips met, and Sasuke felt the last of the tension leave his body. He was spoiled by their usual amount of time—stuck doing paperwork—alone, with plenty of time to steal kisses…today, he hadn't had nearly enough—

Naruto's smile kept breaking the kiss, but Sasuke couldn't bring himself to mind—he didn't imagine he was much better off. Naruto's happiness was always contagious—and the blonde had been nothing but unabashedly appreciative towards Sasuke today—the hassle had _definitely_ been worth it—

He pushed Naruto back, tearing at his shirt—his pants—they moved to the bedroom, leaving a trail of clothes in their wake—Naruto didn't bother shutting the door as he shoved Sasuke back onto the bed—

He crawled over top of him, necklace hanging loosely off his chest, staring down at Sasuke with a desire so clear Sasuke felt himself shudder in anticipation—

"Sasuke," Naruto breathed, "I want you."

Sasuke's body came to life—

"I need you."

Naruto lips pressed along his skin, licking and sucking—

"I've loved you—every day we fought, I loved you," Naruto's lips moved against his skin, "every day we were apart, I loved you," Naruto's eyes rose to meet his, "every day for the rest of my life, I'll love you."

Sasuke's sucked in a breath—the necklace scraped a path along Sasuke's skin—

"I'm yours."

Naruto's lips met his—the kiss was soft—slow—he pulled away and his eyes glittered as if they were made from the stars themselves—

"I'll always be yours."

Sasuke shuddered under the gaze—

"Marry me?"

Sasuke froze.

He didn't know whether to laugh or to scream—whether to kiss Naruto or to punch him—this was—this had been _his_ plan— _damn it_ —

"Sasuke…?" Naruto's smile had faltered—his eyes scanning Sasuke's face—

Sasuke rolled—out, from under Naruto—to grab at his own clothes—where the hell were his pants?

"Sas—I—wait—!" Naruto's voice was panicked, but Sasuke ignored it for the moment, focused on finding the right pocket—

"Listen, I'm sorry—I shouldn't have—please—"

Sasuke tossed the box over his shoulder—turning just as it bounced right off Naruto's forehead, harmlessly tumbling down to the bed.

"Wh—" Naruto's eyes grew impossibly wide.

"You ruined my plans, usuratonkachi."

"Sa—" Naruto stared down at the box—his hands were shaking as he opened it, Sasuke noticed—

"Sasuke—you—"

Naruto launched himself across the room—Sasuke only barely managed to catch him—stumbling back until he hit the wall—he kissed Sasuke in between laughs of delight—Sasuke found himself laughing, too—he just couldn't help it—

"Wait—wait," Naruto pulled back, spinning around, "I have a ring, too—"

He grabbed at his clothes, pulling out a box with trembling fingers—Sasuke didn't resist as Naruto's hand clutched his own—the ring was similar to the one he had picked out—simple, silver—and—

"It has both of our symbols," Naruto held it out to him, "engraved on the inside. I didn't know what else—"

Sasuke kissed him. He was so—so filled with emotion—it was either kiss Naruto or start to sob and he _refused_ to cry—

But Naruto's eyes were red-rimmed as he pulled away, and Sasuke felt his resolve crumble—Naruto, laughing through the tears in his eyes, pushed the ring onto Sasuke's finger and Sasuke found himself scrambling Naruto's hand, too—

Naruto's hand clasped his, their rings pressing together in the grip—god, Sasuke's eyes were _burning_ —how long it had been since he had felt this—this— _happiness—_

"I love you," Naruto breathed, eyes bright and shining and _perfect_ , "I've never been more sure of anything in my life— _fuck_ , Sasuke—"

Naruto's arms wrapped around him, and Sasuke found his face buried into Naruto's neck—his throat was so thick with emotion—he needed to—he wanted to—

"Naruto," he willed his voice not to break, "I—"

Naruto pulled away, gripping at his face—his smile was so bright—

"I know," Naruto's thumb ran across his face—wiping something away, Sasuke realized, "you don't have to say it. I know."

Sasuke's breath came out harsh and uneven—it was meant to be a sigh of relief, but it sounded more like a sob—

He twisted them around—an overwhelming need to feel Naruto, more than anything else, everywhere around him—his back hit the mattress and Naruto knelt over top of him—

"I love you," Naruto breathed again—

Sasuke pulled him down.

"Show me."

And Naruto did.

* * *

"Uchiha Naruto sounds better than Uzumaki Sasuke," Sakura tapped her pen against her cheek.

Naruto gave her an utterly betrayed look.

"What? It's true."

Sasuke tried—and failed miserably—to hide his smirk.

"This doesn't mean I'm giving in, teme," Naruto pinned him with a weak glare, "the Uzumaki name is gonna live on no matter what!"

"Technically, there's still Karin," Sakura pointed out.

"Whose side are you on?!" Naruto rounded on her.

Sakura only laughed, holding her hands up in acquiescence. She waited until Naruto turned away to throw a wink at Sasuke.

Sasuke hid his mouth behind his hand.

* * *

"Naru—mmph!" Sasuke stumbled back from the force of his kiss—not that he really _minded_ , but it wasn't exactly the typical greeting he got when Naruto came back to his office—

"Iruka told me," Naruto breathed, eyes wide and sparkling and _wonderful_ —

"Wh—"

"He told me you—you asked for—you asked his permission, before you—"

Naruto made a strangled noise, cutting off whatever else he was about to say as he buried his face into Sasuke's neck—Sasuke was infinitely grateful, because his cheeks were on fucking _fire—_

That piece of information—it was completely unnecessary for Naruto to know. Iruka—damn it, _why_ was everyone in his life on a quest to embarrass him—

"I am so lucky," Naruto's voice was muffled, thick, breathless, "Sasuke, I'm—you—"

He let out a harsh breath, squeezing Sasuke tighter.

Something twisted inside Sasuke's chest—coiling around his heart, tight—he exhaled, trying to clear it, as Naruto's breath against his neck changed to kisses—moving up, across his chin, his cheek, his lips—he stayed on Sasuke's lips for quite some time—

"I'm going to marry you," he whispered as they pulled apart, eyes wide as if he was only just now realizing it.

"Usuratonkachi," Sasuke tilted his head, mouth widening in a small smirk, "is that a new thought for you?"

Naruto laughed, nudging Sasuke with his nose.

"Shut up, teme—I'm trying to have a moment here."

Sasuke snorted.

"I wondered why he didn't seem that surprised at the dinner," Naruto smiled fondly.

"Who—Iruka?"

Naruto nodded.

"I figured I was just that obvious about it."

"You were," Sasuke smirked, "he wasn't surprised about our relationship at all." He had been rather shell-shocked that Sasuke was planning on proposing, though—and then immediately teary-eyed at the thought that Naruto considered him a father-figure—

Naruto laughed.

"What—really? He knew, too? Did everyone in Konoha know?"

Sasuke snorted, "you're not exactly subtle, usuratonkachi."

Naruto rested his forehead against Sasuke's.

"Not all of us can be stoic bastards, teme."

Sasuke closed his eyes.

"I wasn't exactly subtle, either."

He felt Naruto move away—he opened his eyes to see Naruto, not an inch away from him, searching his face for something—

"You tried to be."

Sasuke fought a smile.

"Yes," he tilted his head, eyeing Naruto, "I tried. I failed. You won, remember?"

Naruto gave a soft laugh, leaning down to rest his head on Sasuke's shoulder.

"Yeah," his voice was muffled—Sasuke could feel his breath against his skin, "this definitely feels like victory."

* * *

"Naruto," he stopped him—Naruto froze mid-step, "I've been thinking—"

"Uh oh."

Sasuke paused to give him an unamused look. Naruto only grinned, moving closer to Sasuke.

"What's up, teme?"

Sasuke swallowed, looking away.

"I think—I should take your name."

There was a pause.

"Wh—really?"

Sasuke still didn't look up.

"Yes."

"…what made you change your mind?" Naruto didn't sound half as excited as he had expected him to be. Sasuke resisted the urge to glance at him—Naruto would be able to read him far too well, he knew—

"The Uchiha name is…tainted," he forced the words out—he hated saying them, but he knew they were true—he knew _Naruto_ knew they were true, "and it would cause undue trouble for the—the Hokage to take a name with that kind of…history."

He swallowed—the silence seemed to seep into every part of him, leaking into his blood, pulsing through his veins—

"Are you serious, Sasuke?"

He _refused_ to look up—

"Yes."

* * *

He kept waiting—it felt nearly stifling—for Naruto to tell him he needed to adjust his signature. He had signed enough documents Naruto had planted in front of his face to assume _one_ of them had to be the one for their new name—even if they hadn't had a ceremony, yet—he didn't even know if Naruto _wanted_ a ceremony—

"What?"

Sasuke blinked back into reality, realizing he had been staring at Naruto. He furrowed his eyebrows.

"Did you want a marriage ceremony?"

Naruto blinked in surprise.

"I thought—I didn't—I didn't think that was even an option," Naruto scanned him.

He hadn't? Then what the fuck had Sasuke talked to Kakashi—and Sakura—and Iruka—for?

"If it was?"

Naruto's mouth opened a little wider, and then closed again.

"I—" Naruto started, blinking down at his desk, "um—"

Sasuke frowned.

"Isn't it kinda—too late for that?" Naruto scratched the back of his neck, eyes diverted—Sasuke tried to catch a glimpse of them—

"Why would it be too late?"

"'Cause we're—" Naruto's eyes finally met his, "already married…?"

Sasuke blinked.

And then he blinked again.

"We—what?"

Naruto stared at him, eyebrows furrowed.

"Sasuke—I put in the paperwork like…two weeks ago. You—"

"What?" Sasuke breathed, his mind reeling, "I've been signing my name as _Uchiha_ Sasuke—!"

Naruto's mouth opened, and then he closed it—only smiling, instead. He moved back, around the desk, shuffling some papers.

"Yes, you have, you stupid teme," he pulled a piece of paper out of the pile, gesturing it at Sasuke, "and what have _I_ been signing my name as?"

Sasuke took the paper—slowly, willing his hand not to tremble—

There it was—in messy, chicken-scratch handwriting—

Uchiha Naruto.

He breathed out a shuddering, trembling breath.

 _Uchiha_ Naruto.

"I thought you knew," Naruto said gently, "I thought it was really obvious how mad I was that you—that those—those _fuckers_ even _began_ to get to you. And then I thought—well—it would really piss them off to have an Uchiha as Hokage, wouldn't it?"

Naruto gave a wane smile, a glint in his eye.

"I signed those papers the same night you said you wanted to be called Uzumaki. C'mon, teme, I know I'm an idiot, but did you really expect me to believe—"

Sasuke pressed their lips together—he didn't need to hear another _word_ —in fact, it was far better if he _didn't_ hear another word with the way he was already brimming with emotion—

"Uchiha Naruto," he breathed as they pulled apart—Naruto's eyes scanned his—

"Yeah," he gave a lopsided grin, "that's my name."

* * *

If Naruto noticed the way his shirts were periodically disappearing—and promptly reappearing with several distinct additions—he didn't seem to mind.

But Sasuke highly suspected he had noticed (well, he _had_ to have noticed the Uchiha clan symbol sprinkled along his clothing by now) from the way Naruto's eyes tended to soften, even more so than usual, when looking at him. Sasuke had caught him, several times, staring at Sasuke with a look of such tenderness that he had felt his heart squeeze at the sight—

"You know," Naruto's voice broke him out his thoughts—his eyes still stared at the page in front of him, but Sasuke got the sense he wasn't seeing the words at all, "having a ceremony would give us an excuse to have a honeymoon."

The words settled into Sasuke's mind slowly—he raised an eyebrow.

"I thought you didn't want to take any more time off?" He tilted his head.

Naruto's eyes rose to meet his—filled with a storm of emotion—

"Well, you know," he said with mock casualness, "for a good cause…"

Sasuke smirked, glancing back down. He supposed Naruto still thought he needed convincing—of course, Sasuke would never say _no_ to some time off—he would definitely appreciate the freedom, but—

"I told you, usuratonkachi," he shuffled the pages together, figuring he was about done with this document anyways, "you ruined my plans."

Naruto stared at him blankly.

"I had—already begun planning a ceremony," he shifted awkwardly, "before you…proposed."

He grimaced, unhappy with the phrasing. It sounded strange—saying things like proposal, wedding, _honeymoon_ —as if him and Naruto were watered down to just…a couple.

They were so much more than that.

"You—you had?"

Sasuke shifted again, shrugging.

"Nothing concrete," he looked away, "just speaking with—with Iruka, which you know—and Kakashi—and Sakura."

He cleared his throat, suddenly feeling as if something was blocking it—it was the only explanation for the way he kept stumbling over his words—

"Oh," Naruto breathed—Sasuke's eyes flickered up just long enough to see how wide Naruto's eyes were—

"Oh," he said again, "I—yes. Yes, let's do that. Yes, let's—definitely, absolutely do that. _Fuck_ —"

Naruto ducked down, face in his hands. Sasuke immediately moved closer—standing behind where Naruto sat.

"What's the matter with you?" He scowled, pulling at Naruto's shoulders in an attempt to see his face.

Naruto let out a long, harsh breath—finally leaning back. He was blinking rather rapidly.

"You—you—" Naruto shook his head, biting his lip, "Sasuke—you are so—I can't—"

Naruto's voice cut off just as it sounded like it was about to crack. Sasuke eyed him with more than a little alarm.

"Naruto—are you…okay?"

Naruto reached out, gripping Sasuke's hand so hard it nearly hurt.

"I'm the best I've ever been," he smiled a little, swallowing, "I just—I just can't _believe_ that—"

He let out another harsh breath—almost like he was trying to clear his throat—

"I can't believe you love me."

Sasuke blinked.

"I mean—don't get me wrong, I believe it, but I just—I can't _believe_ —and then you do something that reminds me and I just—I just—"

"Turn into a blubbering mess," Sasuke smirked, leaning forwards to wrap his arm around Naruto—he was surprised the blonde's death grip allowed it—

"Shut up, teme," Naruto muttered—but his smile was back, now, and Sasuke felt the victory flood through him.

Sasuke pressed his lips to Naruto's neck.

"Do you need me to say it?" He asked softly. He would be lying if he said that the words didn't flutter around his head—in fact, more often than not, it felt as if they were on the tip of his tongue—but—

"No," Naruto shook his head, "I know it's true. And—besides—if you said it, then—then I'd _really_ start crying—"

He laughed, pulling Sasuke's arm closer to himself—Sasuke smirked against his skin, filing that information away for future use.

"I'll keep that in mind."

* * *

"Here's an idea," Sakura tapped her pen against her lip, "make it a working vacation."

Naruto blinked at her. Sasuke frowned.

"Not—with meetings—or even paperwork, necessarily," Sakura said, likely in reply to Sasuke's disapproving look, "but more like…research. We're still trying to improve our system—and nothing is concrete yet. And it feels nearly impossible to decide how to change it without an example to build on; maybe another village is doing something right. We could learn from them."

Naruto leaned back in his chair—Sasuke could tell he was considering it. Sasuke's own mind was reeling—

"That would be—much more long-term than what we were planning," Naruto seemed to gauge Sakura's reaction.

It would be—something like that would take…at least half a year. Half a year of him and Naruto—travelling together—

"Mhm—a few months, at least. But it would be good for the village in the long run—and for you two, I think," her eyes flickered to Sasuke.

He had never given Sakura enough credit.

"What about the village? And the Uchiha Compound?"

Sakura made a noise—Sasuke frowned thoughtfully. The buildings—well, the initial inspections had already been completed, and everything to be maintained had already been decided upon. Maybe…

"Kakashi-sensei was Hokage once," Sakura pointed out, "I'm sure he wouldn't mind taking the reins again."

"He'll complain the whole time, and you know it," Naruto pointed his pen at her, smiling. Sakura laughed.

"Probably. But just keep in contact with us, and it will be fine, I think."

"Hm," Naruto's eyes turned to him.

Sasuke sucked in a breath.

"Sakura," he looked at her, "would you mind taking over the initiative to rebuild the Uchiha Compound?"

Her eyes went wide—out of the corner of his eye, Sasuke saw Naruto's smile spread—Sasuke swore there was a glare from how bright it was—

"M-me?"

Sasuke gave a tight nod.

"I have notes," he elaborated—notes was an understatement; he had meticulously detailed what each building would become, and why—he knew it would be a hassle for her—she was busy enough with running the entire hospital as it was—but—maybe, she would be willing—if he could just convince her, "that I can provide you with, and—"

"Sasuke," she interrupted, eyes brighter than he had ever seen them before, "I would be honoured."

* * *

"Sasuke," Naruto smiled up at him—he looked about as nervous as Sasuke felt—he didn't know why his heart was pounding like this but he felt as if he could barely _breathe_ —

"I, um," Naruto ran a hand through his hair—and something in Sasuke's chest calmed a little, "I've been trying to write these vows since we started planning this—and I didn't get anywhere. I trashed everything I wrote."

He laughed a little, looking up at Sasuke with sparkling, sheepish eyes.

"I've never been any good at planning things."

Sasuke snorted. He heard Iruka's chuckle and he could see the flicker of Sakura's smile—

"So I'm—I'm just gonna be honest," Naruto nodded, swallowing nervously, "um—remember—remember when we were still chasing you? When you were with Orochimaru—and even after that—"

Sasuke remembered very well—and so did his heart, he assumed, from the pain it spread through his chest—

"Whenever we found you—when I kept tracking you down—you'd ask me—you kept asking me—why I did it. Why I went so far for you. And I—I said it was because I was your friend," he swallowed, eyes flickering down, "but that wasn't really why. And I think you knew that. That's why you kept asking."

Sasuke let out a soft breath.

"The real answer was because I love you."

Sasuke sucked the breath back in.

"I love you, Sasuke."

How—why were these words affecting him like this _now_ —he had heard them before—but somehow—this—

"So I—I vow—as I always have—to be with you. To live with you and die with you. I'll always be at your side—even if we aren't together, I'll be with you. And I'll follow you wherever you go," he gave a shaky laugh, "which I think I've—I've proven so far."

Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Sakura duck to hide her smile—or maybe wipe at her eyes, Sasuke couldn't be sure—

"Usuratonkachi," he muttered, as if the word would clear the lump in his throat—it was barely a whisper, but Naruto's smile turned so affectionate that Sasuke knew he heard—

"I will follow you," he said again, swallowing—Sasuke could hear the thickness in his voice, "and if you—if you ever fall back down—if you're ever gone, again—I will bring you back. I will always bring you back."

Sasuke nodded, fighting the sting in his eyes. Naruto would. He knew Naruto would.

"I vow to love you—no matter where you are, or where we go. I've never been able to stop that anyways," he laughed again, ducking his head—and Sasuke _knew_ that the tears had started—damn it, Naruto, Sasuke was barely managing to keep it together as it was—

"And I vow to—" he swallowed, tilting his chin up, his eyes were puffy and red-rimmed but so _bright_ , "I vow to—to do everything I can to earn the Uchiha name. Really earn it, I mean—I'm—I'm going to be a real family with you, Sasuke. I vow that."

Naruto gave a jerky nod, another tear escaping him—Sasuke frantically wiped at his own cheek—his chest was so tight—he felt like—like he could barely _breathe_ through the emotion—

"I used to think—when I was little—I thought," Naruto swallowed, looking down at the floor, "I thought I'd never know what love was. Because I had never felt it—towards me, I mean—and so—even if I was in love—I thought I wouldn't be able to ever tell."

He shook his head—looking up again. He was smiling, now—a brilliant, watery smile— _fuck_ —

"But I do. I know—and I feel it. Every day, I feel it," Naruto gave a soft laugh, "you gave that to me, Sasuke. Something I thought I'd never have—you've given me more than you could ever know. You've saved me more than you could ever know. Sasuke, you—"

He rocked back on his heels, as if barely able to keep himself from coming closer—

"I love you. I'll love you every day for the rest of my life—so please—please let me—let me spend it with you."

Sasuke let out a shuddering breath, stumbling forward—Naruto caught him just as Sasuke pressed his face into his neck.

He heard Naruto give a soft laugh.

"Your turn, teme."

"Usuratonkachi," he closed his eyes, his mind suddenly blank of _everything_ he had written down in preparation for this moment, "…you've ruined all of my plans."

Naruto's delighted laughter rang through the room.

* * *

"Take care of yourselves, you two," Sakura's arms wrapped around the two of them—Sasuke could tell she was fighting back tears, "I'll miss you."

"We'll be back before you know it, Sakura-chan," Naruto sounded pretty stuffed up himself—

"Yeah," she breathed, pulling back—her hands still rested on their shoulders, "write to me, okay? Or send a clone back, once in a while."

"I will," Naruto smiled, taking a step back. Really, they would probably end up visiting—it wasn't as if Konoha was that far out of the way…

Sakura let her hand drop from Naruto's shoulder, but Sasuke caught her other hand before it could do the same.

"Sakura," he called her attention to him, "…thank you."

Her eyes grew soft—and then rapidly misty. She pulled her hand away to wipe at them, smiling.

"Of course," she shook her head, laughing a little, "anything for you—you two idiots—"

Naruto laughed as Sakura twisted away—Sasuke saw the tears even as she turned—

"What, no thanks for me?"

Sasuke turned towards Kakashi's voice.

"After all the paperwork I'm going to have to do? Unbelievable," Kakashi smiled as Naruto hugged him. Sasuke automatically took a step closer to them.

"You know we love you, Kakashi-sensei," Naruto's voice was muffled—he was grinning as he pulled away.

"I know no such thing," he ruffled Naruto's hair, "go say bye to Iruka."

"'Kay!" Naruto ducked past him, nearly tackling his former teacher to the floor. Kakashi chuckled—Sasuke glanced down at the floor to hide his own smile.

"You know," Kakashi said, after a moment, "I was going to say something like—'make us proud, Sasuke'—but," he paused, letting out a breath, "it wouldn't really make sense."

He turned, meeting Sasuke's eyes—

"Considering how…unbelievably proud of you I already am."

Sasuke felt himself freeze—eyes widening in the face of Kakashi's kind, affectionate, teary-eyed gaze—Kakashi let out a breath and Sasuke could hear how it shuddered—

"So," he clapped Sasuke on the shoulder, "keep it up, kiddo."

With the way Sasuke's throat closed up, all he could do was nod.

Kakashi moved away—it was only a moment before he was replaced by a brilliant smile and bright blue eyes…

Sasuke let out a breath.

"Are you ready, teme?" Naruto's hand took his.

Was he ready?

Ready to travel, around the world, with Naruto? Ready to be away, from Konoha, away from the paperwork and the responsibilities—and the people? Ready to _miss_ Konoha, something that still felt foreign—wrong—because he had sworn Konoha would never be home to him—

Was he ready to have a home to come back to?

"Usuratonkachi."

He had never felt readier for anything in his life.

**Fin.**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And there it is! Rest assured that Sasuke and Naruto have a long, happy life together ahead of them :) Bonus chapters are definitely a possibility. I'm brimming with ideas for this story! If you're curious, you can see a bunch them here, [on my tumblr](http://kinomiakai.tumblr.com/post/168332647237/in-honour-of-rebuilding-being-finished-heres-a)! I figured I ought to give you guys at least that much, because you have all been so kind! And I take forever to write!
> 
> At any rate, I really hope you enjoyed this story! And I hope I made you all smile :) Please let me know what you thought!
> 
> Until next time,
> 
> \- Kinomi
> 
> EDIT: And if you haven't yet seen [this art](https://azag24.tumblr.com/post/181487086793/and-i-was-running-far-away-would-i-run-off-the), please look at it. Azag24 is so talented!!!!!


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